sent to Pompeii from across the Roman Empire. “It’s always good when we have new data,” Gallello said. “This opens again the doors [to] a new way to think about the history of the population at Pompeii.”

This new study probed the DNA evidence that has been taken from some of these bodies. The team used the same strontium isotopes that were used to date the DNA samples to get a better understanding of the diversity and origins of Pompeii’s residents.

A family frozen in time by the volcanic eruption that hit Pompeii nearly two millennia ago. A mother, a father, and two children…one of the many stories invented by observers of the plaster casts made of the victims of the tragedy that struck the ancient town.

An ancient-DNA analysis of victims in Pompeii who died in Mount Vesuvius' eruption reveals some unusual relations between the people who died together.

The devastation of Pompeii by the eruption of Vesuvius in 79 CE is one of ... facilitated by strengthening trade across the Roman Empire. And this is just six individuals in a city of thousands. It's a staggering result. Not only does it give us a new ...

Analysis of ancient DNA from the ashen casts of Pompeii victims changes presumed relationships between them, and reveals the port city's socioeconomic and geographic diversity.