The first casts of the forms of Pompeian victims of the AD 79 eruption of Mt Vesuvius were successfully achieved under the directorship of Giuseppe Fiorelli in 1863. To date, 104 individuals have been cast by restorers and archaeologists during the course of excavation. The methods used to obtain these casts were not well documented. It was always assumed that plaster or lime cement was merely poured into voids which preserved the impression of organic remains buried in the ash that covered the site during the catastrophe. It was also assumed that the undisturbed skeletal remains of victims were encased within the casts. The initial aim of the Pompeii Cast Project was to study these bones to build on and test the results of an earlier study of the large sample of Pompeian human remains that were disarticulated by post-excavation activities. Apart from providing information about the people who did not manage to escape the eruption, the project aimed to challenge previous interpretations of the lives and activities of these victims that were solely based on superficial inspection and circumstantial evidence.Twenty-six casts were subjected to CT scanning or X-ray analysis in 2015. The results were unexpected. It was clear that the casts had been considerably manipulated. Bones were often removed prior to casting, and other elements had been introduced. This ongoing project has now been expanded to establish how these casts were achieved, to better understand nineteenth- and twentieth-century archaeological and restoration practice.

中文翻译：

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在庞贝受害者的演员阵容中：2015 年庞贝演员项目第一季的结果

公元 79 年维苏威火山喷发的庞贝遇难者的第一批铸模于 1863 年在朱塞佩·菲奥雷利 (Giuseppe Fiorelli) 的领导下成功完成。迄今为止，在挖掘过程中，修复者和考古学家已经铸造了 104 个人。用于获得这些模型的方法没有得到很好的记录。人们一直认为石膏或石灰水泥只是倒入空隙中，从而保留了在灾难期间埋在覆盖现场的灰烬中的有机残留物的印象。还假设受害者的未受干扰的骨骼遗骸被包裹在石膏中。庞贝铸造项目的最初目的是研究这些骨骼，以建立和测试早期对因挖掘后活动而分离的庞贝人类遗骸大样本的研究结果。除了提供有关未能逃脱火山爆发的人员的信息外，该项目还旨在挑战以前仅基于表面检查和间接证据对这些受害者的生活和活动的解释。 对 26 个模型进行了 CT 2015年扫描或X射线分析。结果出乎意料。很明显，演员阵容受到了相当大的操纵。骨骼通常在铸造前被移除，并引入了其他元素。这个正在进行的项目现在已经扩大到确定这些铸件是如何实现的，以更好地了解 19 世纪和 20 世纪的考古和修复实践。该项目旨在挑战以前仅基于表面检查和间接证据对这些受害者的生活和活动的解释。2015 年对 26 个模型进行了 CT 扫描或 X 射线分析。结果出乎意料。很明显，演员阵容受到了相当大的操纵。骨骼通常在铸造前被移除，并引入了其他元素。这个正在进行的项目现在已经扩大到确定这些铸件是如何实现的，以更好地了解 19 世纪和 20 世纪的考古和修复实践。该项目旨在挑战以前仅基于表面检查和间接证据对这些受害者的生活和活动的解释。2015 年对 26 个模型进行了 CT 扫描或 X 射线分析。结果出乎意料。很明显，演员阵容受到了相当大的操纵。骨骼通常在铸造前被移除，并引入了其他元素。这个正在进行的项目现在已经扩大到确定这些铸件是如何实现的，以更好地了解 19 世纪和 20 世纪的考古和修复实践。很明显，演员阵容受到了相当大的操纵。骨骼通常在铸造前被移除，并引入了其他元素。这个正在进行的项目现在已经扩大到确定这些铸件是如何实现的，以更好地了解 19 世纪和 20 世纪的考古和修复实践。很明显，演员阵容受到了相当大的操纵。骨骼通常在铸造前被移除，并引入了其他元素。这个正在进行的项目现在已经扩大到确定这些铸件是如何实现的，以更好地了解 19 世纪和 20 世纪的考古和修复实践。