Herculaneum half day

Our journey takes us along the gorgeous coastal road trough Castellamare di Stabia and out along the motorway to Herculaneum.

Herculaneum was destroyed along with Pompei in 79 A.D., and rediscovered in 1709. It was a residential town without Pompei’s commercial importance, surrounded by the villas of the wealthy Romans.

When the catastophe of 79 AD occurred Herculaneum was submerged under a torrent of mud and lava that hardened into a soft tufa (a kind of course rock) that preserved many of the timber features and household objacts which can be seen today.

A large portion of the old Herculaneum is still buried under the modern town and even today excavations are going on to discover wath treasures lie buried under the rock, to the extent that some families are being rehoused so work can continue.