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.
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 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,” said Johannes Eber, who led the study, in a press release.
Read More: The City Under Pompeii’s 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.D., it preserved not only buildings and objects but also traces of everyday activities, down to what people burned in their homes.
The two incense burners analyzed in the study came from Pompeii itself and a nearby villa in 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.
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 said.
Wine and Resin Found in Pompeii Ritual Burners
One of the clearest signals of long-distance exchange came from a censer. Chemical analysis identified compounds linked to a resin from the Burseraceae family, most likely derived from Canarium, a tropical tree found in parts of Africa and Asia.
The same sample also contained tartaric and malic acids, indicating that a grape-derived substance, likely wine or vinegar, was burned or poured into the vessel.
The combination of resin and wine aligns with ritual practices described in Roman texts, in which incense and liquid offerings were often used together in ceremonies. Until now, however, this pairing had rarely been identified directly in archaeological material.
“The combination of various cutting-edge chemical and microscopic investigation techniques makes the everyday religious practices of the people in Pompeii suddenly tangible,” explained Philipp W. Stockhammer, whose research group initiated the study, in the press release.
Researchers note that some uncertainty remains. Because the vessels were excavated decades ago, no surrounding soil samples were preserved, meaning contamination cannot be fully ruled out.
Ancient Trade Networks Reached Into Everyday Life in Pompeii
The presence of imported resin in a household setting suggests that materials from tropical regions were not restricted to elite consumption or large-scale commerce. They were integrated into everyday religious life.
These substances likely traveled through established trade routes linking Africa, Asia, and the Roman world, moving through ports such as Alexandria before reaching Italy.
“Without Pompeii, our knowledge of the Roman world would be poorer,” said the director of the Pompeii Archeological Park, Gabriel Zuchtriegel, in the press release.
The ash preserved in these vessels captures how goods moved across continents, and how those movements shaped daily life.
Read More: Revisiting Human Remains at Pompeii Rewrites the Story of Mt. Vesuvius’ Victims
Article Sources
Our writers at Discovermagazine.com use peer-reviewed studies and high-quality sources for our articles, and our editors review for scientific accuracy and editorial standards. Review the sources used below for this article:
Source: Read Full Article
