y areas are still to be uncovered in Pompeii, but it is even more important to restore what has already been excavated. Today 44 of the 66 hectares of urban area are visible, and it is unanimously considered that the other 22 hectares must be left under the volcanic debris, in order to preserve this important part of our past for future generations.

The nine books of Antichità d’Ercolano Esposte by the Accademia Ercolanese (from 1757 onwards), as well as the works of Winckelmann, Francois Mazois and William Gell, informed the whole of Europe about what was being revealed as the ancient Roman towns of Herculaneum and Pompeii were slowly being uncovered.

The discoveries aroused great interest, and emotion, among Enlightenment circles – and offered many new subjects for cultural debate. Slowly a new, Neo-classical, attitude emerged, influencing philosophers, men of letters and artists. Painters, sculptors, jewellers, upholsterers, cabinet-makers, joiners, decorators – all made explicit reference to the findings in the towns that Vesuvius buried, and there was a constant demand for books illustrated with accurate pictures.

Many European countries, thanks to the new importance given to the ancient world, opened academies in Naples and Rome to offer hospitality to those who wanted to study the newly excavated towns. In this period the younger members of many of the noble and rich families of Europe completed their education by doing a ‘grand tour’ of Europe, and a visit to Pompeii, Herculaneum and the Museo Archeologico in Naples was considered an essential part of these trips.

The diaries of some of the people who made these journeys show how much influence the excavations had all over Europe, and these discoveries certainly eventually gave rise to modern archaeology, and led to the finding of many other ancient Greek and Roman towns.