POMPEII, ITALY—Live Science reports that well-preserved human remains have been recovered from an alcove with an arched ceiling within a masonry tomb at the Porta Sarno necropolis, which is located outside the walls of Pompeii. The skeleton was partially mummified and retains close-cropped hair and an ear. Two funerary urns were also found. Traces of paint suggest the tomb had been decorated with images of green plants on a blue background. An inscription at the site revealed that the tomb belonged to Marcus Venerius Secundio, who served at the temple of Venus as a slave before he became a priest of the imperial cult of Augustus and eventually died in his 60s. The inscription also said that Secundio conducted rituals in Latin and Greek. Gabriel Zuchtriegel, director of the Archaeological Park of Pompeii, said this is the first direct evidence that Greek performances were held in the cosmopolitan city. Llorenç Alapont of the University of Valencia added that it is not clear if the mummification was intentional. During the Roman period, most Pompeians were cremated, he explained. To read about the remains of two men killed by Vesuvius' eruption that were recently unearthed at a villa near Pompeii, go to "More Vesuvius Victims."
