Pompeii Unveils Permanent Exhibit for Vesuvius Eruption Victims’ Casts

A new permanent exhibition opened at the Palestra Grande in Pompeii on March 12, 2026. Filmogaz.com visited the site to report on the display.

Exhibition overview

The route occupies the south and north porticos of the Palestra Grande. The site sits in front of the Amphitheater.

Curators organized two main sections. One focuses on volcanology and organic finds. The other centers on human remains and victims’ casts.

Scope and selections

Twenty-two casts were chosen for display. Curators selected the best preserved and most legible examples.

Each cast is shown with its archaeological context. Examples come from houses, streets and city gates.

Scientific reconstruction

The south section explains the Vesuvius eruption sequence. A new video and a four-meter column of ash and lapilli illustrate the deposits.

Researchers date the eruption start to around noon. The event developed over roughly thirty-two hours.

An intense pyroclastic phase struck Pompeii about nineteen to twenty hours after the onset. That phase produced the final, deadly deposits.

The volcanic blanket averaged five to six meters in depth. Voids from decomposed bodies later allowed archaeologists to make casts.

Technique and conservation

The cast method dates to 1863. Giuseppe Fiorelli pioneered filling cavities with liquid plaster.

Plaster remains the preferred material for its detail. Later restorations sometimes used cement or resin.

The display explains cast-making via CT images and multimedia. Visitors can see the internal structure of selected examples.

Archaeological highlights

Several discoveries anchor the show. Finds span early twentieth-century excavations to work in the 1970s.

• Cryptoporticus House: ten victims found in early 1900s, apparently attempting to escape through windows.
• House of the Golden Bracelet: remains linked to a 1974 collapse on a stair landing. Jewelry and coins were recovered nearby.
• Palestra Grande area: 75 victims identified between 1935 and 1939. Seven died during pumice fall; sixty-eight succumbed to pyroclastic currents.
• Southern portico latrine: eighteen fugitives were located, along with a horse and its driver.
• Porta Nola and Via Stabiana: bodies uncovered in excavations between 1975 and 1978 and along escape routes toward the port.

Museum approach and visitor care

Curators framed the victims’ section as a memorial. The layout anticipates emotional impact and offers a choice to enter.

Graphic design is minimal. Archival photos, linear texts and audiovisual elements document discovery and restoration.

Accessibility features

The route can be traversed in both directions to ease visitor flow. Audio tracks and videos include Italian and international sign language.

The exhibit offers alternative communication tools. Two tactile stations present three-dimensional models with Braille captions.

Voices behind the project

Gabriel Zuchtriegel, director general of the Pompeii Archaeological Park, described the installation as a major museological challenge. He thanked Silvia Bertesago and Tiziana Rocco for their work on the installation.

Culture Minister Alessandro Giuli praised the scientific rigour and the respectful presentation of the victims. Authorities emphasized ethical display and public education.

The new permanent exhibit links rigorous science with memory. It invites reflection on the human costs of the Vesuvius eruption and life in ancient Pompeii.