Part 2/7:
The story begins in the Villa dei Papiri, where the Greek philosopher Philodemus of Gadara shared his thoughts on music and pleasure. A scribe meticulously documented these discussions on papyrus scrolls. Tragically, around 79 AD, Mount Vesuvius erupted, engulfing Herculaneum and the villa in hot ash and mud. The scrolls, once verbose with philosophical insights, were buried, damaged, and rendered inaccessible to future generations.
Fast-forward to the 17th century when explorers unearthed remnants of the villa, discovering statues, frescoes, and charred scrolls. Despite their curiosity, the technology of the time forced archaeologists to physically unroll these delicate scrolls, resulting in the destruction of much of their content.