Spectacular new discoveries discovered include a private spa

After lying hidden under meters of volcanic rock and ash for 2,000 years, a “once in a century” find has been unearthed in the ancient Roman city of Pompeii.

Archaeologists have discovered a sumptuous private bathhouse, potentially the largest ever found there, with hot and cold rooms, exquisite works of art and a huge swimming pool.

The spa-like complex is located at the heart of a large residence discovered over the past two years during a major excavation.

“It is these spaces that are really part of the ‘Pompeii effect’: it is almost as if people had left just a minute ago,” says Dr. Gabriel Zuchtriegel, director of the Pompeii Archaeological Park, who revealed the new discovery. exclusively to BBC News.

Analysis of two skeletons discovered in the house also shows the horror that the inhabitants of Pompeii faced when Mount Vesuvius erupted in 79 AD

The bodies belonged to a woman, between 35 and 50 years old, who was holding jewelry and coins, and a younger man, between 20 and 30 years old.

They had barricaded themselves in a small room, but died when a tsunami of superheated volcanic gas and ash, known as a pyroclastic flow, swept through the city.

“This is a dramatic place, and everything you find here tells you about the drama,” says Pompeii curator Dr. Ludovica Alesse.

A third of the ancient city still remains hidden under the volcanic rubble of the disaster, but the new excavation, the most extensive in a generation, provides new insights into ancient Roman life.

The archaeologists have been followed by a documentary team from the BBC and Lion TV, for a series called Pompeii: the new excavation.

Now an entire block of Pompeii has been discovered, revealing a laundry and a bakery, as well as the large private house. These are all believed to have been owned by a wealthy individual, possibly Aulus Rustius Verus, an influential politician from Pompeii.

The discovery of the bathhouse is further confirmation of its elite status, says Dr. Zuchtriegel.

“Only a few houses have a private bath complex, so it was really something for the richest of the rich,” he says. “And this is so big that it is probably the largest bath complex in a private house in Pompeii.”

Those lucky enough to use the bathroom suite would have stripped naked in a changing room with vibrant red walls and a mosaic floor dotted with marble-inlaid geometric patterns from across the Roman Empire.

They would then head to the hot room, take a bath, and enjoy the sauna-like heat provided by a suspended floor that allowed hot air to flow underneath and walls with a cavity through which the heat could circulate.

They would then move to the warm, brightly painted room, where they would rub oil into the skin, before scraping it off with a curved instrument called a strigil.

Finally, they would enter the largest and most spectacular room of all: the frigidarium or cold chamber. Surrounded by red columns and frescoes of athletes, the visitor could cool off in the pool, which is so large that between 20 and 30 people can fit in it.

“In hot summers, you could sit with your feet in the water, chat with your friends or perhaps enjoy a glass of wine,” says Dr. Zuchtriegel.

The bathhouse is the latest discovery to emerge from this extraordinary house.

A huge banquet hall with jet black walls and stunning artwork of classical scenes was found last year. A smaller, more intimate room, painted pale blue, was also unearthed, where the residents of the house went to pray to the gods.

The residence was undergoing renovation: tools and construction materials were found everywhere. In the blue room there is a pile of oyster shells on the floor, ready to be crushed and applied to the walls to give them an iridescent shine.

Next to this beautiful space, in a narrow room with hardly any decoration, a surprising discovery was made: the remains of two Pompeians who did not manage to escape the eruption.

The skeleton of a woman was found lying on top of a bed, curled up in the fetal position. The body of a man was in a corner of this small room.

“The pyroclastic flow from Vesuvius came along the street right outside this room and caused a wall to collapse, and that basically crushed him to death,” explains Pompeii archaeologist Dr. Sophie Hay.

“The woman was still alive while he was dying – imagine the trauma – and then this room filled with the rest of the pyroclastic flow, and that’s how she died.”

Analysis of the male skeleton showed that despite his young age, his bones had signs of wear, suggesting that he was of a lower status, possibly even a slave.

The woman was older, but her bones and teeth were in good condition.

“He was probably someone from a higher level in society,” says Dr. Hay. “She could have been the wife of the owner of the house, or perhaps an assistant who took care of the wife, but we don’t know.”

A variety of items were found on a marble table in the room – glassware, bronze jugs and pottery – perhaps brought to the room where the couple had hidden in the hope of waiting out the eruption.

But it is the objects carried by the victims that are of special interest. The younger man was holding some keys, while the older woman was found with gold and silver coins and jewelry.

These are kept in the Pompeii vault, along with other priceless finds from the city, and we had the opportunity to see them with archaeologist Dr. Alessandro Russo.

The gold coins still shine as if they were new, and she shows us delicate gold earrings and natural pearls, pendants and intricately engraved semi-precious stones.

“When we find this type of object, the distance between ancient times and modern times disappears,” says Dr. Russo, “and we can touch a small part of the lives of these people who died in the eruption.”

Dr Sophie Hay describes the private bath complex as a once-in-a-century discovery, which also sheds more light on a darker side of Roman life.

Just behind the hot room is a boiler room. A pipe brought water from the street (some was siphoned into the cold pool) and the rest was heated in a lead boiler intended for the hot room. The valves that regulated the flow look so modern that it is as if they could still be opened and closed today.

With a furnace underneath, the conditions in this room would have been unbearably hot for the slaves who had to keep the entire system running.

“The most striking thing about these excavations is the stark contrast between the lives of slaves and those of the very, very rich. And we see it here,” says Dr Sophie Hay.

“The difference between the sumptuous life of the bathhouse, compared to the boiler room, where the slaves would be feeding the fire by working all day.

“A wall is anything that could divide you between two different worlds.”

The excavation is in its final weeks, but new discoveries continue to emerge from the ashes. A limited number of visitors are allowed into the excavation while it is ongoing, but it will eventually be fully open to the public.

“Every day there is a surprise here,” says Dr. Anna Onesti, director of the excavation.

“Sometimes in the morning I come to work thinking it’s a normal day at work and then I discover that we have found something exceptional.

“It is a magical moment in the life of Pompeii and this excavation work offers us the chance to share it with the public.”