Shanty towns persisted at Pompeii until 472 CE; rebuilding blocked by debris and Vesuvius. Recent work on the Insula Meridionalis in the south of the city revealed reoccupation of upper levels into as late as the fifth century CE A shanty town grew up after the eruption where settlers lived in upper floors of houses and warehouses projecting above the volcanic debris, using buried lower rooms as cellars Archaeologists discovered post-eruption occupation levels in a bath complex and several seaside villas, with settlement persisting until the eruption of 472 CE

Vesuvius kept erupting after 79 CE, and up to 6 meters of ash made rebuilding impossible. Recent digs at the Insula Meridionalis show squatters living in upper floors above the debris, using buried rooms as cellars. Settlement continued until the 472 CE eruption. No organized effort ever cleared Pompeii until 18th-century excavations began.

Key Facts

  • Recent work on the Insula Meridionalis in the south of the city revealed reoccupation of upper levels into as late as the fifth century CE
  • A shanty town grew up after the eruption where settlers lived in upper floors of houses and warehouses projecting above the volcanic debris, using buried lower rooms as cellars
  • Archaeologists discovered post-eruption occupation levels in a bath complex and several seaside villas, with settlement persisting until the eruption of 472 CE
  • The eruption buried Pompeii beneath up to 6 meters of ash and pumice, a layer too deep to clear away and too unstable to build upon
  • Porous ash and pumice prevented the surrounding landscape from retaining moisture, and it took decades for the volcanic debris to consolidate and become fertile
  • Vesuvius remained active after 79 CE; Statius noted continued eruptions, Galen mentioned routine ash clouds, and Cassius Dio recorded an eruption in 203 AD loud enough to be heard in Capua
  • There was never any organized attempt to rebuild Pompeii's infrastructure or public places, which remained buried until 18th-century excavations

Related site: Pompeii — view location, images, and history on the Ancient Nerds map.

Source: Why Wasn't Pompeii Rebuilt After the Eruption? by toldinstone