At an ancient residence called the House of Helle and Phrixus, a Pompeii family tried to save themselves from Mount Vesuvius’ eruption by barricading themselves in a bedroom, according to the Pompeii Archaeological Park.
Researchers recently discovered the remains of four family members, including a child. The remains provide insight into Pompeii’s final moments.
Mount Vesuvius erupted in 79 C.E., spewing ash over the city of Pompeii. Now, archaeologists are still exploring the region nearly 1,950 years later.
Most residents of Pompeii had no idea what was happening when the eruption began. The majority of the 15,000 to 20,000 residents of Pompeii and Herculaneum fled the region and managed to survive the eruption. The four family members were among the roughly 2,000 people who stayed in Pompeii.
Their remains were found in the House of Helle and Phrixus, a residence named after a fresco depicting the mythological figures, which was discovered on the dining room wall.
According to Greek mythology, Helle and Phrixus were siblings who flew away on a ram with a golden fleece when their stepmother attempted to sacrifice them to the gods.
Phrixus successfully escaped, but Helle ended up falling into the sea. The fresco shows the siblings reaching out to each other, with Helle in the sea and Phrixus on the ram.
The family’s demise may have been accelerated due to the house’s architectural features. The House of Helle and Phrixus had an open-roofed atrium, meant to help with collecting rainwater. It was a typical characteristic of Roman houses.
But as heaps of volcanic debris fell from the sky, the house was quickly flooded through the atrium. Archaeological evidence indicated that the four individuals huddled together in a small room to try to protect themselves. They pushed a wooden bed frame against the door in an attempt to block the debris from entering.
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When that didn’t work, researchers think the family then pulled back the barricade to make an escape. However, they only got as far as the dining room.
“This house, with its decorations and its objects, shows us people who tried to save themselves,” said Gabriel Zuchtriegel, a co-author of the study and director of the archaeological park. “They didn’t succeed, but their story is still here, beneath the ashes.”
The remains of the family, the wooden bed frame, and other objects, like a bronze amulet and a stash of amphorae filled with a Roman fish sauce, were preserved by ash over the centuries. The child likely would’ve worn the amulet because boys traditionally wore them for protection until adulthood.
It is unknown whether the family owned the House of Helle and Phrixus. They may have taken shelter there after the owners left. The house appeared to have been under renovation at the time, based on traces of masonry material.
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