Ancient cosmetics, coins and mouse skeletons discovered in Pompeii home shed light on life before deadly eruption

Ancient artifacts found in a sealed cupboard in Pompeii suggest what life was like in the historic Roman city before its destruction during the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in AD 79.

The closet was located in a house in the center of the city, the Pompeii Archaeological Park said in a statement. The house had already been excavated in 1912, but an investigation of the surrounding area is currently underway.

Inside, archaeologists discovered cosmetics, an incense burner, a bronze lantern and a jar of balm. Weights, probably used for commercial purposes, were also found inside a wooden chest of drawers. Researchers also found vases and pots made from materials such as bronze, glass and ceramics, as well as an “elaborate snuff box” decorated with pine.

A necklace representing several deities and made of several materials was also found. The jewel could have been considered “magical” in Roman times, the park said. Today, these pieces are known as “crépundia” or rattles. The necklaces have amulets intended to protect the wearer as a child. Many carried them into adulthood as keepsakes from their childhood, the park said.

There were high levels of “geographic mobility” in the Roman world, the archaeological park said, explaining that many people, from slaves to wealthy merchants, lived far from loved ones and the places where they grew up.

The necklace found in the closet contains at least 20 miniature objects and materials, including bones and crystal.

The cabinet also contained 38 bronze coins, kept in a vegetable material container. The presence of the coins led researchers to believe that the owner(s) did not have time to recover valuable items.

It is impossible to know what happened to the owners of these objects, the archaeological park said. They may have escaped the eruption of Vesuvius and were unable to return to the site and dig to recover their belongings. They may have died in the disaster, as well as approximately 15 to 20% of the population of Pompeiior subsequently, without heirs who could recover the objects.

Little is known about the inhabitants of the house. The items in the closet, including the paintings, and the location of the house on one of the main streets of Pompeii suggest “a certain standard of living.” But mouse skeletons found inside the house cast doubt on this belief. However, such skeletons have been discovered in other places in Pompeii, showing that the city is struggling with “unwelcome guests”, the park said.

The house was previously attributed to a person named Cornelius Maximus, the archaeological park said. This identification was based on the discovery of inscriptions which are no longer visible. The newly discovered objects probably won’t allow researchers to identify the owner of the house, but they will allow archaeologists to study “the different traces of a life,” archaeological park director Gabriel Zuchtriegel said in a Facebook post.

“We cannot reconstruct with certainty the identities of those who lived in the house, but these fragments bring us closer to their daily lives,” Zuchtriegel said.

Pompeii is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site and a popular tourist attraction. Archaeologists are also constantly exploring the ruined city, digging beneath piles of volcanic ash and pumice to peer into its preserved remains.

In January, the archaeological park announced that researchers had discovered a 2,000-year-old love note and an illustrated gladiator fight scene inscribed on a city wall. In December 2025, archaeologists found evidence suggesting that some residents of Pompeii returned to live in the city after the eruption.