BACKGROUND INFORMATION
Pompeii and Herculaneum, both situated in the Bay of Naples were ancient Roman civilisations that suffered destruction in 79AD. The dormant volcano Mount Vesuvius, which had once provided them with fertile lands to grow crops on, erupted, covering and perfectly preserving both cities. Pompeii was a larger city, with about 15,000 inhabitants, while Herculaneum was smaller with about 5,000 inhabitants. Both sites have been excavated and provide a valuable insight for historians and archaeologists into life in Rome in the first century.