Overview

• August 2025 excavations led by Gabriel Zuchtriegel at the Insula Meridionalis unearthed ceramics, salvaged marble, ovens and structural alterations dating to after AD 79.
• The discoveries reveal survivors and later settlers reclaiming upper stories for shelter and converting ground floors into cellars equipped with ovens and mills.
• Archaeologists estimate that this informal, camp-like settlement endured without Roman infrastructure until the fifth century CE.
• Previous digs prioritizing pristine frescoes and architecture had inadvertently removed and overlooked evidence of post-eruption occupation.
• The findings shift Pompeii’s story from a static time capsule to a site of dynamic, long-term habitation.