History of Pompeii’s inhabitants has been rewritten after new analysis of ancient DNA

The history of the last inhabitants of Pompeii is quite clear. When Vesuvius volcano erupted in 79 AD. c., the heat wave killed most civilians almost instantly. Those who survived died of suffocation. The expelled layer of ash fell on the bodies and preserved their shape for millennia. However, both archaeologists and geneticists face difficulties regarding the identification of residents who died at the site, even when the condition of the bodies is obvious.

Recent research questions the dominant narrative regarding the identity of some of the people who lived in Pompeii during the Vesuvius eruption. The study found that not all small bodies next to adult figures should be considered children with their parents, and that the women being hugged may actually be men. Details of the research process, which relied on elusive traces of DNA, were published in the journal Current Biology.

DNA of an organic tissue that disappeared

Studying the DNA of Pompeii figures is not as simple as it seems. The organic tissues of the original bodies no longer exist. Present-day historical pieces are hollow ash molds filled with plaster. The story of the last moments of these Roman citizens is told based on their place of residence, their condition when they died, their height, weight, and the items they used.

Some of the original skeletal material was embedded in those plaster casts. This allowed scientists to generate ancient DNA data by analyzing isotopes found in the material. The accomplishment of the work was to find genetic fingerprints to determine the gender, ancestry and family relationships of 14 people from Pompeii where tissue no longer exists.

Diversity of the people of Pompeii

The investigation completely challenges the story’s two-city setting. The first and most representative is the ‘House of the Golden Bracelet’ where three bodies were found: two large and one small. According to the interpretation of modern archaeologists, this was a classic Pompeian family. Because the adult figure was close to the little girl, it was believed for years that it was a mother holding her four-year-old son in her arms.

However, DNA isotope data showed that the three people were not genetically related. Furthermore, they were all men and at least one of them had dark skin and black hair. According to DNA traces, not a family but three men lived in the ‘House of the Gold Bracelet’. One of them had the symptoms of a child.