Herculaneum
Italy · Campania · 45 m
Description
Herculaneum (Ercolano) is the smaller and better preserved of the two towns Vesuvius buried, and the difference is the burial itself. Pompeii was covered in ash, Herculaneum in a surge of hot mud that set like rock and carbonised what it sealed, so upper floors, roof beams, wooden furniture, doors and even bread survive. The excavation sits in a pit below the modern town, entered across a bridge. Boat sheds along the buried shoreline held hundreds of skeletons of people who never got away. The Villa of the Papyri gave up a library of scrolls.
Length of stay
Recommended length of stay: 1 to 2 days (optimal 1 day)
Travel season
Best time to visit: April – June or September – October
- Jan
- Feb
- Mar
- Apr
- May
- Jun
- Jul
- Aug
- Sep
- Oct
- Nov
- Dec
Highlights
- Herculaneum archaeological park
- Boat sheds on the buried shoreline
- Vesuvius crater rim walk(Day trip)
- Carbonised wooden furniture, doors and roof beams
- House of the Neptune and Amphitrite Mosaic
- House of the Deer
- Villa of the Papyri
- Central Baths and the Suburban Baths
- MAV virtual archaeological museum
- Villa Campolieto and the Vesuvian villas
- Ercolano town and the Resina market
Getting there
- Train stations:
- Ercolano Scavi, Portici-Ercolano, Portici Via Libertà