Presentations

The eruption of Mount Vesuvius in AD79 was a natural disaster of major proportions, killing thousands of people and burying cities such as Pompeii and Herculaneum. The rediscovery of the ruins more than 200 years ago captured the public’s imagination and gave rise to racy novels, Hollywood movies, comic strips and even a musical. Indeed, there’s so much that’s been said and written about it that it’s hard to separate fact from fiction. Australian archaeologist Dr Estelle Lazer has gained an international reputation for her scientific research on the disaster, first examining the bones of those who perished, and more recently by conducting CT scans on the famous plaster casts of the deceased that were made during excavations. Join Estelle as she explains the science, busting a few volcanic myths along the way.