Short answers, pulled from the story.
Herculaneum was buried by Mount Vesuvius during the eruption of 79 AD. The date of the eruption has been established as on or after the 17th of October, based on evidence including seasonal produce in shops, heavier clothing on buried victims, sealed wine fermentation jars, and a coin minted no earlier than the second week of September.
Herculaneum lies under approximately 20 metres of volcanic material deposited by six pyroclastic flows and surges. This is roughly five times the depth of material covering Pompeii, which is buried under around 4 metres, making Herculaneum significantly more difficult to excavate.
Herculaneum was rediscovered in 1709 when Prince d'Elbeuf acquired a well site and tunnelled into what turned out to be the ancient theatre. Regular archaeological excavations began in 1738 under the patronage of Charles III of Spain. Today over 75% of the ancient city remains unexcavated.
At least 340 bodies were identified near the ancient shoreline, in stone vaults known as the boat houses and on the beach itself. Before the discovery of these remains between 1980 and 1982, it was widely believed that most of Herculaneum's population of around 5,000 had escaped.
The Villa of the Papyri is a large seaside villa at Herculaneum thought to have belonged to Lucius Calpurnius Piso Caesoninus, Julius Caesar's father-in-law. It contains the only ancient library to have survived virtually intact, consisting of carbonised papyrus scrolls recovered between 1752 and 1754. In 2024, participants in the Vesuvius Challenge used AI assistance to read hundreds of words across fifteen columns of text, representing about 5% of one scroll.
Since 2001, the Herculaneum Conservation Project, a partnership initiated by the Packard Humanities Institute, has led conservation efforts at the site. The project has conducted pilot conservation work, partnered with the British School at Rome for conservator training, and collaborated with the Getty Museum to develop techniques for stabilising deteriorating painted walls. Excavations have been temporarily suspended in order to direct resources toward preserving the already-exposed portions of the city.