Pompeii Restoration Works Have Begun

Pompeii, considered to be the best preserved Roman city in the world, was covered by lava spouting out from the Vesuvius volcano on August 24 79.

A petrified Roman coated in hardened ash from the Vesuvius volcano is stuck in the year 79. Photo Credit: REUTERS

A museum nearby Pompeii shows findings by archaeologists of human bodies and household items frozen in time, exactly as they were in the year 79.

A restoration project estimated to cost $US141 million began today and has a scheduled completion date of December 31 2015.

The restoration project will drive more visitors to Pompeii. To date the ‘city of ash’ gets 2.3 million visitors each year. By end 2017 the number should reach 2.6 million.

According to Johannes Hahn, European Commissionaire for local politics, an increase in tourists spells a financial increase and more jobs for the community.

Unesco, the world’s inheritance organization, placed Pompeii on the world’s inheritance list in 1997.