The ‘most shocking side of ancient slavery’ is discovered in Pompeii – a ‘bakery prison’ where people and animals were forced to grind grain for bread
Archaeologists unearthed a prison in ancient times Pompeii that shows ‘the most shocking side of ancient slavery.’
The ruins of an ash-covered stone structure found at the Italian site were once a bakery where people and animals were forced to grind grain for bread.
Animals walked in circles blindfolded for hours, turning the mill, while people continuously poured grains into it.
The prison only had ceiling windows that let in light and one doorway that led to an opulent house owned by the slavers.
The remains of three people were found in the old prison, indicating that it was operational when Mount Vesuvius exploded.
The ruins of an ash-covered stone building that was once a bakery told a story of people and animals forced to grind grain to make bread
Two thousand years ago, Pompeii, located 14 miles southeast of Naples, was a bustling city of about 15,000 before the eruption of Vesuvius destroyed it on August 24, 79 AD. destroyed.
The eruption is believed to have killed 16,000 people in Pompeii and surrounding towns, making it one of the most destructive volcanic eruptions in history.
Pompeii director Gabriel Zuchtriegel said: ‘It is the most shocking side of ancient slavery, the side devoid of both relationships of trust and promises of release, where we were reduced to brute force, an impression fully confirmed by securing the few windows with iron bars.’
The only exit leads to the atrium of the house – even the stable does not have direct access to the street.
“It is, in other words, a space in which we must imagine the presence of people with a servile status whose freedom of movement the owner felt to restrict,” Zuchtriegel said.
The team found several semicircular indentations in the volcanic basalt slabs around the millstones that looked like “footprints,” but deeper analysis showed that the carvings were deliberately made to prevent animals from slipping.
The ruins correspond to the gripping stories of the second-century AD writer Apuleius, who describes the grueling labor endured by men, women and animals by the ancient Romans.
The room, with no view of the outside world, had small windows high in the wall with iron bars to let in the light and indentations in the floor to coordinate the movement of the animals, forced to walk around for hours, blindfolded (artist’s impression )
“The wear and tear of the different indentations can be attributed to the endless cycles, always the same, performed according to the pattern laid out on the pavement,” the researchers shared.
‘More than just a groove, it reminds us of the gears of a clockwork mechanism designed to synchronize the movement around the four closely packed millstones found in this area.’
Archaeologists first discovered the ruins of Pompeii in 1549, when an Italian named Domenico Fontana dug a water canal through Pompeii, but the dead city remained buried.
And they continue to discover more from the ash-covered city.
Iron bars have been found at the site that once covered small windows near the ceiling
The team found several semicircular indentations in the volcanic basalt slabs around the millstones that looked like “footprints,” but deeper analysis showed that the carvings were deliberately made to prevent animals from slipping.
The remains of three people were found in the old prison, indicating that it was operational when Mount Vesuvius exploded
Experts have relied on ancient texts to understand what happened in 79 AD. happened.
Pliny the Younger, an administrator and poet, watched the disaster unfold from a distance, and his letters describing the horrific event were found in the 16th century.
His writings show that the eruption took the residents of Pompeii by surprise.
Pliny said that a column of smoke “like an umbrella pine” rose from the volcano and made the towns around it as black as night.
Two thousand years ago, Pompeii, located 22 kilometers southeast of Naples, was a bustling city of around 15,000 inhabitants before the eruption of Mount Vesuvius destroyed it on August 24, 79 AD.
While the eruption lasted about 24 hours, the first pyroclastic waves began at midnight, causing the volcano’s column to collapse.
An avalanche of hot ash, rock and poisonous gas flowed down the side of the volcano at 120 miles per hour, burying victims and remnants of everyday life.
Hundreds of refugees sheltering in the vaulted arcades on the coast of Herculaneum, with their jewelry and money in hand, were killed instantly.
This event put an end to the life of the cities, but at the same time preserved them until they were rediscovered by archaeologists almost 1,700 years later.
The excavations of Pompeii, the industrial center of the region, and Herculaneum, a small seaside resort, have provided an unparalleled insight into Roman life.