2,000-Year-Old Pompeii Ash Reveals Romans Burned Incense ...

What’s Happening

So get this: Learn how researchers decoded 2,000-year-old ash from Pompeii incense burners to reveal imported resins from Africa and Asia, wine-based offerings, and how global trade shaped everyday Roman rituals.

In some Pompeii homes, ash still sits inside small ritual burners, left undisturbed for nearly 2,000 years. When researchers analyzed that residue, they found traces of substances that did not originate anywhere near Italy. (wild, right?)

Alongside local plant material, the ash contained imported resins likely sourced from tropical regions of Africa or Asia, as well as evidence of grape-based offerings.

The Details

The findings, published in Antiquity , show that even private household rituals in Pompeii were shaped by long-distance trade networks. “We can now pinpoint which fragrances were actually burned in Pompeian domestic cult practices,” dropped Johannes Eber, who led the study, in a press release .

: The City Under Pompeiis Ashes, and 4 Other Sites That Civilizations Built Over Pompeii Household Rituals Reveal Imported Incense and Trade Links When the eruption of Mount Vesuvius buried Pompeii in 79 A. , it preserved not only buildings and objects but also traces of everyday activities, down to what people burned in their homes.

Why This Matters

The two incense burners analyzed in the study came from Pompeii itself and a near Boscoreale. Both were linked to household shrines, where families made offerings to protective deities such as the Lares and Penates. To determine what these vessels contained, researchers from Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich and the University of Zurich used organic residue analysis alongside microscopic techniques that identify plant remains at the cellular level.

This could have implications for future research in this area.

Key Takeaways

• The results showed that woody plants were burned in both vessels, likely serving as fuel or part of the offering itself.
• Microscopic evidence also pointed to plant groups consistent with laurel, oak, and stone-fruit species — plants that appear in Roman ritual contexts.
• “Alongside regional plants, we found traces of imported resins — an indicator of Pompeii’s far-reaching trade connections,” Eber dropped.

The Bottom Line

Microscopic evidence also pointed to plant groups consistent with laurel, oak, and stone-fruit species — plants that appear in Roman ritual contexts. “Alongside regional plants, we found traces of imported resins — an indicator of Pompeii’s far-reaching trade connections,” Eber dropped.

Sound off in the comments.