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The Buried City

Unearthing the Real Pompeii

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The Buried City

By: Gabriel Zuchtriegel, Jamie Bulloch - translator
Narrated by: Nick Biadon
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About this listen

 **THE INSTANT SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER FROM THE DIRECTOR GENERAL OF POMPEII**

'The best book on Pompeii I've ever read' STEPHEN FRY

'An essential read for anyone interested in this extraordinary place' TELEGRAPH

'Brilliant' TOM HOLLAND

A vast area of Pompeii is being excavated for the first time, revealing astonishing insights into how people really lived. In this revelatory new history, Director of Pompeii Gabriel Zuchtriegel shares the untold stories that are at last emerging.

Pompeii is a world frozen in time. There are unmade beds, dishes left drying, tools abandoned by workmen, bodies embracing with love and fear. And alongside the remnants of everyday life, there are captivating works of art: lifelike portraits, exquisite frescos and mosaics, and the extraordinary sculpture of a sleeping boy, curled up under a blanket that's too small.

The Buried City reconstructs the catastrophe that destroyed Pompeii on 24 August 79 CE, but it also offers a behind-the-scenes tour of the city as it was before: who lived here, what mattered to them, and what happened in their final hours. It offers us a vivid sense of Pompeii's continuing relevance, and proves that ancient history is much closer to us than we think.

'A fascinating new book about what we are still learning about this most haunting of all lost cities... deeply moving' MAIL ON SUNDAY

'Makes the familiar magical' DAN SNOW©2025 Ullstein Buchverlage GmbH (P)2025 Hodder & Stoughton Limited Ancient Archaeology Rome Ancient History
All stars
Most relevant
I’ve read/listened to many books on Pompeii and this is one of the best. A great new perspective from someone who ran the show. Just as good as the works by Mary Beard.

Excellent new perspective on Pompeii

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I liked the project to bring local kids to an appreciation of Pompeii through performing ancient plays in an ancient theatre there.

Originality and creativity of the author

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I’m with Stephen Fry on this one – it is the best book I’ve ever read on Pompeii. But it’s so much more than a book on Pompeii. While Dr Zuchtriegel covers the expected topics of what is known about this endlessly fascinating ancient site, the excavation sites, the recent finds, restoration projects etc., he also examines the discipline of archaeology, questions its role generally and, specifically, the role of the Pompeii Archaeological Park. He takes individual frescoes or objects and discusses their place in the town’s history and their possible meaning to the owners. His personal and professional anecdotes illustrate the warmth and humanity of this obviously very erudite man, a man deeply committed to his work and his profession. Nick Biadon's narration is perfect, it's a pleasure to listen to him.

Magnificent

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I am not sure what I was expecting but the author presented nothing particularly interesting about the the inhabitants of Pompeii. Obviously, I admire his work in uncovering about the archaeological remains of the city and the people but it was a self satisfied head of the team. I have visited Pompeii a number of times including various other Roman cities and I was disappointed in not much new in the sociological aspect of Roman society which tends to focus naturally on the elite because they were literate and left much what is known.

Rather boring

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