The excavations of Herculaneum, an immense treasure trove of art and history, give us back an ancient and splendid city founded by the Greeks on the shores of the sea. In 1991, following an agreement between the Ministry for Cultural and Environmental Heritage and the Agency for the Promotion and Development of Southern Italy, the project was awarded under concession to the Temporary Association of Companies. The new excavation was conducted to the west of the modern “Vico Mare” and is connected to the archaeological park by a narrow and deep trench that, grafting at the height of the House of Aristides, continues with a tunnel below Vico Mare. In the easternmost section of the excavation site, part of a large building and the southwestern end of the city, including some houses and a spa complex with a large apsed nymphaeum, have been brought to light. The current excavation fee is 30 meters. Below sea level. A system of water pumps controls the water stratum outcropping due to the sinking of the ancient coastline following the eruption of 79 AD. and of the phenomena connected to it.
The Villa dei Papiri, from the 1st century AD, with its frescoed rooms, unique mosaics in the world and about two thousand papyri, has been brought to light with a long restoration. The city revealed by the excavations carried out is that “frozen” by the eruption of 79 AD. that, burying it under a thick layer of mud and pyroclastic materials, has allowed the conservation of wooden structures and small objects.
– 300,000 MC of archaeological excavation performed below sea level
– 1,500 square meters of pictorial restoration and consolidation of frescoes found
– 3,000 ML of removal and reconstruction of lacertines for frescoes
– 3.000 MQ of integration or re-creation of cocciopesto
– A video surveillance and burglar alarm system with underground electromagnetic field, as well as a satellite wireless system with digital data transmission, with video matrix, hardware and software expansion, including the laying of over 50,000 ml of fiber optic cables
average workforce employed about 160 workers assigned to the various tasks
40 technicians working among surveyors, surveyors, engineers, architects and archaeologists
