Eruption of Mount Vesuvius Transforms Human Brain Tissue into Glass, Study Reveals

In 2020, researchers made an intriguing discovery inside the skull of a victim of the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in Italy, which occurred in AD 79. They found a black, glassy substance that seems to be fossilized brain tissue. Recently, scientists have been studying how this unique glass was formed and what events led to the death of the individual.

The remains were found in Herculaneum, a town that was destroyed alongside Pompeii during the volcanic eruption. The person is believed to have been a young man, discovered lying face down on a bed, buried under layers of volcanic ash.

The scientists analyzed samples of the glassy material from the skull and spinal cord of the victim. They determined that the body tissue must have been heated to extremely high temperatures, above 510 degrees Celsius (950 degrees Fahrenheit), and then cooled rapidly. This rapid cooling is part of a process called vitrification, which turns liquid into glass.

Guido Giordano, a volcanologist from Roma Tre University and the lead author of the study, emphasized that the key to forming glass is how quickly something cools down, not just how hot it gets. For instance, volcanic glass known as obsidian is created when lava cools quickly, such as when it touches water.

However, the typical pyroclastic flows from Mount Vesuvius, which are mixtures of fast-moving volcanic material and toxic gases, did not reach high enough temperatures—maximums around 465 degrees Celsius (869 degrees Fahrenheit)—to turn normal brain tissue into glass. Additionally, these flows cool off slowly, making it unlikely that they played a role in this fascinating transformation.

The researchers suggest that an extremely hot ash cloud might have surrounded the young man and provided the right conditions for vitrifying his brain tissue. However, this particular combination of events raises some doubts among other scientists about the assertion, as such conditions are thought to be rare.

Interestingly, the skull and spine of the individual likely helped to shield the brain from completely breaking down due to heat, which allowed some of the unique glass to form. It’s important to note that the ash clouds produced during eruptions differ from pyroclastic flows; while the latter stay close to the ground, the ash clouds contain finer particles that can be suspended in the air and can still be very dangerous.

To draw their conclusions, Giordano and his team carefully heated and cooled glass samples from the victim’s remains to understand the necessary temperatures and cooling rates needed for vitrification. They found that the lethal ash cloud could have killed the individuals quickly because temperatures within the cloud were likely around 510 to 600 degrees Celsius.

Nevertheless, not all scientists agree on the findings. Alexandra Morton-Hayward, a forensic anthropologist at the University of Oxford, expressed skepticism about the glass being brain tissue. She notes that organic materials, which typically contain a lot of water, require extremely cold conditions for preservation or glass formation, a process known as cryopreservation.

Cryopreservation is different from vitrification since it involves freezing materials in liquid nitrogen to prevent ice formation, allowing structures to remain intact. Morton-Hayward suggests that this glass artifact may not be the only exception to the typical characteristics of soft tissue.

Giordano, however, stands firm in his belief that the glass is of organic origin, supported by previous studies showing preserved neurons and proteins in the brain of this individual. Thus, while this remarkable discovery sheds light on the effects of the Vesuvius eruption on human remains, it also opens the door for further research and discussion in the scientific community.