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A theory has been proposed as to why trash has been found among the tombs of Pompeii:
To explain the presence of so much garbage alongside the dead, archaeologists have theorized that 15 years before the eruption of Mount Vesuvius, an earthquake left Pompeii in disrepair. However, this theory is unlikely, according to an archaeologist who says the citizens of Pompeii may have just been messy, at least by modern, Western standards. [Images from Pompeii]"We tend to assume things like that are universal, but attitudes toward sanitation are very culturally defined, and it looks like in Pompeii attitudes were very different than ours," said Allison Emmerson, a graduate student studying Roman archaeology in the classics department of the University of Cincinnati.
Mystery of Pompeii's Trashy Tombs ExplainedI am skeptical of such an argument, though I realize I am only hearing what is based on an article. It seems to me that there could be any number of different reasons why trash appears frequently near tombs, and attributing it simply to different cleanliness standards is an easy way out which would be hard to support. It this were all there was to it, why are we talking about garbage near tombs rather than garbage scattered throughout the city? Seems to me that there was some connection between garbage and tombs - whether it was for some utilitarian, ritualistic, or symbolic purpose.
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