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Grave find with remains of hair: Ex-slave Marcus Venerius Secundio
Photo: Pompeii Archaeological Park / dpa
In the city of Pompeii, quite a few extraordinary finds have been made under the volcanic ash.
The place on the Gulf of Naples was extinguished in antiquity by the eruption of Vesuvius - and this moment was perfectly preserved for today's archaeologists.
Well-preserved finds have therefore often been made there.
Now archaeologists in the sunken city in Italy have once again discovered the mummified remains of a person in an ancient grave.
"That was a surprise for everyone, even for the specialists in grave archeology," said the German archeologist Gabriel Zuchtriegel, the site's director.
Bone analyzes showed that the man was older than 60 years.
The skeleton is therefore one of the best preserved that has ever been found in Pompeii because the room was hermetically sealed and created the best conditions for the remains to survive.
Short gray hair and remains of the ear can still be seen on the head of the corpse.
In addition, remnants of fabric on his body piqued the researchers' curiosity.
They want to clarify whether the mummification of the body was intended and whether this was part of a rite.
There are several reasons why this find is considered special: According to the findings of the experts, the deceased in the 1.6 by 2.4 meter grave chamber is a former slave. Even his name is known: Marcus Venerius Secundio. According to the findings, he was a servus publicus, i.e. a slave of the city. At around 30 years of age, his owners should have released him into the wild. At least that was customary at the time, even if the power of disposal lay with the owner.
"He then comes to a certain degree of wealth, but not excessively, but at least in such a way that he could afford this grave," explains Zuchtriegel. The chamber is also in a prominent position, at the exit of the Porta Sarno city gate, so that it can be seen when leaving the city. The inscription also shows that the ex-slave was a kind of temple guardian of the Temple of Venus and participated in the imperial cult. He was able to show social prestige according to the breeding bar.
The inscription also provided evidence of a long believed but never proven assumption: in Pompeii there were performances in Greek instead of just Latin. Secundio writes that he organized games in Greek and Latin for four days. It is the first time that a sure testimony has been found for this fact. At that time, the Roman upper class learned Greek as a kind of educational language in school. It was also the lingua franca in the eastern Mediterranean - similar to English today.
Zuchtriegel interprets the ex-slave not only to show his social status, but also to make a cultural statement and convey: I also have access to this high culture.
In Pompeii there were people who spoke Greek, but mostly they were slaves or prostitutes.
The funeral rite is also noticeable in this case, explains Zuchtriegel.
“It is a grave from the last phase of Pompeii, from the sixties to the early seventies.
This is a time when adults are exclusively cremated in Pompeii, and this is the first grave from this period to have a funeral. ”The researchers came across it during excavations at the cemetery at Porta Sarno in the east of the ancient Roman city.
Pompeii was set by eruptions of the Vesuvius volcano in 79 AD.
Ash, mud and lava buried the city under them.
It was rediscovered in the 18th century.
Since then, archaeologists have repeatedly come across spectacular and excellently preserved finds from the Roman era.
Pompeii is also one of the most popular tourist attractions in Italy.
joe / dpa
