A new study has confirmed that the brain of a Herculaneum resident was turned into glass by the intense heat from Mount Vesuvius’ eruption in A.D. 79. The victim, a man believed to be in his mid-20s, was found buried under ash on a wooden bed in a public building. Researchers have long speculated that the explosion’s heat could have vitrified his brain tissue.
Analysis of black, glossy shards embedded in the skull revealed proteins common in brain tissue and fatty acids found in human hair. A chunk of charred wood unearthed near the skeleton showed a thermal reading of 968 degrees Fahrenheit, which is roughly the temperature of a wood-fired pizza oven. The study’s findings were initially met with skepticism, but new research using electron microscopy, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, and differential scanning calorimetry has verified that the fragments are indeed glassified brain tissue.
Vitrification, a process where material is burned at high heat until it liquefies, requires rapid cooling to harden into glass. The unique finding implies complex processes, including the formation of pyroclastic density currents that spewed from Vesuvius. The ash cloud’s brief presence and subsequent pulses of colder debris likely killed the residents and preserved the brain tissue.
The 2020 study suggested that the heat broke the soft tissue into smaller pieces without destroying it, while the bones provided protection to the brain. As temperatures returned to normal, the brain fossilized into glass. While some scientists remain skeptical, this latest research has shed new light on the extraordinary conditions of the eruption and the preservation of human remains.
Source: https://www.nytimes.com/2025/03/02/science/vesuvius-pompeii-volcano-brain.html