On that fateful day in 79 CE when Mount Vesuvius rained nether region on the Roman town of Herculaneum and Pompeii , the intense flare-up of heat turned one poor somebody ’s mind into glass . Literally .
Back in the 1960s , archeologist discovered the clay of a human in the ruins of Herculaneum lying on a wooden bed and asphyxiate in volcanic ash . Reporting their findings inThe New England Journal of Medicine , Italian researcher from the University of Naples Federico II studied the capacity of this individual ’s skull and get word a shiny black shard of ice .
They argue the material is brainiac tissue that has been burned at an extremely high temperature and undergone a process called vitrification . Typically , brainiac tissue is extremely rare to find during archaeological piece of work because it is quick to break down . In sure situations , encephalon tissue can be somewhat preserved as the tissue paper ’s adipose tissue get commute to glycerol and fatty acid salts , effectively turn into goop .
In this case , however , the tissue was subjected to such an acute temperature , perhaps as high as 520 ° C ( 968 ° fluorine ) , that it became vitrified . This is the process when a nitty-gritty is transformed into a glassful , usually through vulnerability to scorchingly hot temperatures .
There were several clue suggesting this was truly vitrify brain tissue , not simply a mislaid gem . For starters , the glass contains several proteins that you could come up in human brain tissues . The researchers also detected fatty acids found in human hair’s-breadth grease within the material . lastly , there was no trace of any other similar glassy material anywhere else on the body or around the site .
The researcher say this discovery is “ unique ” and seems to be the first prison term this has been seen in an archaeological context . However , they note that similar report of glass brains were look among victims ofthe bombardment of Dresdenin World War II . Over just three days in February 1945 , British and American planes fell around 3,900 tons of explosive on the German city , create a firestorm that belt down around 25,000 multitude .
Herculaneum was n’t the only dupe ofMount Vesuvius in 79 CE . The catastrophic irruption alsodestroyed the nearby Roman city of Pompeii , Oplontis , Stabiae , and several other smaller settlements . As you’re able to ideate , this resulted in thousands upon M of dreadful deaths . Many were smother in volcanic ash , some choked to dying on searingly hot gas , and others wereinstantly vaporized by the rush of heat .
Another new study , released today , found that hundreds of people in Herculaneum most belike became immobilize inside boat houses , where they slowly but sure enough were “ baked ” live .
