Pompeii was a Roman town near Naples that was partially buried when Mount Vesuvius erupted in AD 79, covering it in 4 to 6 meters of ash and pumice. Along with the town of Herculaneum, Pompeii was destroyed and buried during the catastrophic two-day eruption of Vesuvius. The town remained lost for almost 1700 years before being rediscovered in 1749.