1.Covering an area of 66 hectares, the ancient city of Pompeii is the biggest archaeological site in the world and one of the most famous. It is annually visited by almost 2,5 million tourists who are eager to discover its history.
2.The Amphitheater of Pompeii is the first Roman amphitheater built in stone. It is the oldest amphitheater in the world that still stands today.
3.Before being wiped off the face of the earth, Pompeii was the place where the rich Romans used to spend their holidays. According to the legend even the famous Nero owned a property in Pompeii.
4.Mount Vesuvius was a mystery for the inhabitants of Pompeii. They believed that it was a simple mountain, because it didn’t have any volcanic activity for almost 1800 years. The legend says that the word “volcano” was actually invented after this famous eruption and it comes from Vulcan who is the Roman god of fire.
5.When Mount Vesuvius erupted, it pulverized pumice and hot ash at the rate of 1.5 million tons per second. The 700 degrees Celsius lava rolled over the neighboring cities at a speed of 110 kilometers per hour.
6.It is said that Vesuvius is 17000 years old and that it has erupted almost 50 times. The most recent eruption took place in 1944, during the Second World War. Nowadays it is the only active volcano in continental Europe and it is considered really dangerous for all the inhabitants who live in the area.
Remember that the future belongs to the curious and stay close for the next “Did you know that?” 🙂
You can also read the previous articles “Did you know that?” ⇒Here →1.→2.→3.
