Nowadays Pompeii is a big attraction for tourists willing to discover what rests of the ancient splendours of the Roman Empire of the years 80 BC.
Pompeii was almost destroyed completely and covered by the eruption of the Vulcan Mount Vesuvio in 79 a.c. and was forgot for years.
The excavations started in the 18th century and brought gradually to the discover of the fabulous villas with frescos preserved in time, an amphitheatre and other signs that show the prosperity of this town in the past. The excavations are not done yet and they still go on with the goal of giving the modern society the treasures of the past.
Ercolano was destroyed, together with Pompei, by the eruption of the Vulcan Vesuvio, in 79 a.c. Ercolano was a residential zone, with no commercial relevance like in Pompeii, with rich villas of wealthy Romans. Ercolano was submerged by a torrent of lava which turned into soft tuff thanks to which may frescoes were saved and we are able to see them still today. A part of the old Ercolano is still submerged in the ground thus the excavations go on.