DNA of Pompeii Man Killed During Vesuvius Eruption Yields Its Secrets Almost 2,000 Years Later

When Italy’s Mount Vesuvius erupted violently in 79 A.D., a cloud of superheated ash killed hundreds in and across the historical Roman cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum—together with a middle-aged man who perished instantly as he rested on a chaise lounge inside a Pompeian dwelling. Now, a world group of scientists has absolutely sequenced the person’s DNA based on a paper published Thursday in the journal Scientific Reports.

The full sequencing is believed to be the primary ever of a Vesuvius sufferer. It revealed that the person was genetically just like folks residing in Rome on the time but additionally had genes frequent amongst residents of the close by island of Sardinia within the Mediterranean Sea.