HERCULA'NEUM, an ancient city of Italy, was situated at the north-western base of Mt. Vesuvius, about 5 m. e. of Naples. Considerable obscurity envelops its early his tory; it is supposed, however, to have been of Phyielan origin, and to have been occu pied afterwards by Pelasgians and Oscans. It subsequently was conquered, with all the rest of Campania, by the Samnites, and later it fell into the hands of the Romans. In 63 A. D. the city was seriously injured by a violent earthquake; and in 79 it was buried, along with Pompeii and Stables, by the memorable eruption of Vesuvius (q.v.) which took place in that year. It now lies at a depth of from 70 to 120 ft. below the surface, and is filled up and covered with volcanic tufa, composed of sand and ashes, and con solidated to some extent by water, which is often thrown up in great quantities during volcanic eruptions. Above it, on the modern surface, are the two large villages PorLici and Resins. In the latter, in 1706, on the occasion of deepening a well fragments of mosaics were first brought up; but little was done in the way of systematic excavation till 1733, when explorations were commenced under royal authority. It was then dis covered that the building near the bottom of the well, from which the first relics were obtained, was the theater. This building was forthwith explored and cleared, and several statues, both in bronze and marble, were extracted from it. Excavations were
carried on but to a limited extent, not only in consequence of the hardness of the tufa, but from the fear of undermining the dwellings on the surface. Hence visitors can see only a very small portion of this entombed city. The chief edifice shown is the theater, which had been very large, and was built but a short time before the fatal eruption. It has 18 rows of stone seats, and could accommodate 8,000 persons. A basilica, two small temples, and a villa have also been discovered; and from these buildings many beautiful statues and remarkable paintings have been obtained. Among the art-relics of Herculaneum, which far exceed in value and interest those found at Pompeii, may be mentioned the statues of iEschincs, Agrippina, the Sleeping Faun, the Six Actresses, gercury, the group of the Satyr and the Goat, the busts of Plato, Scipio Africanus, Augustus, Seneca, .Demosthenes, etc: These treasures, together with such vases and domestic implements as have been found, have been conveyed to the museum at Naples. Latterly, the portion of Herculaneum towards the sea, which had been covered only by loose ashes, has been laid and ancient buildings may now be seen there to advan tage as well as at Pompeii.