Pompeii – These are not just archaeological finds, but fragments of a broken humanity. Starting today, the Palestra Grande at the Pompeii excavations hosts a "memorial" destined to remain etched in the memory of visitors: a permanent exhibition featuring 22 plaster casts, faithful reproductions of the inhabitants overtaken by the fury of Vesuvius in 79 AD.
The trail was officially inaugurated this morning by the Director of the Archaeological Park, Gabriel Zuchtriegel, in the presence of the Minister of Culture, Alessandro Giuli.
The last breath of a city
The exhibition allows us to gaze directly into the horror of those moments. Thanks to the historic technique of casts—obtained by pouring plaster into the voids left by the bodies now decomposed beneath the blanket of ash—the victims reemerge in their final, desperate pose.
There are women crouching, trying to make themselves small, children clutched in their parents' arms, and men lying down, their limbs sprawled or their hands pressed to their faces to protect themselves from the toxic gases and heat. A "freeze frame" of pain that conveys the individual dimension of a collective catastrophe.
A memorial between archaeology and emotion
For the first time, these figures are not displayed as isolated elements, but form a coherent and permanent exhibition. "It's a way to look that tragedy in the face and sense the fear of those who tried, in vain, to save themselves," the organizers explain. Beyond the dramatic human silhouettes, the exhibition offers a glimpse of interrupted daily life: the exhibit also features food from the era, also charred and preserved by time, offering a stark contrast between the normality of a meal and the exceptionality of the end.
Tensions on the guide front
The inauguration, however, is taking place amidst some tension within the unions. The tour guides have expressed their concerns, sending a formal notice to Director Zuchtriegel. At the heart of the controversy is the request that tours of the site and the new exhibitions be conducted exclusively by certified personnel, to safeguard the quality of the historical narrative and the professionalism of the profession, ensuring that flow management does not compromise certified expertise.
Pompeii is impressive, the casts are a still image that makes you think; the large gymnasium now has a memorial that seems serious but also cold. The guides have expressed doubts and perhaps it is right that only qualified people take the tours, but certain details remain unfinished and get lost.