ROME, ITALY—A child’s skeleton has been discovered in a previously unexcavated corner of Pompeii’s central public bath complex, according to a report in The Telegraph. Archaeologists detected the remains with the use of sophisticated scanning equipment. The seven- or eight-year-old is presumed to have taken shelter in in the baths during the eruption of nearby Mt. Vesuvius some 2,000 years ago. The building did protect the child from falling debris, but he or she most likely suffocated in the clouds of ash produced by the eruption. The pyroclastic flow eventually entered through the building’s windows and sealed the space. DNA analysis may reveal more information about the child. To read about gardens at Pompeii, go to “Food and Wine Gardens.”
