Then, their ruins ________ by accident in the 18th century; and people ________ by what was found among them. The cities’ ruins had thousands of statue-like remains of the victims of the volcanic eruption! Pompeii and Herculaneum’s citizens ___________ by the ash and mud of the volcano after the explosion. This ash, mud, and rocks _________ out of the volcano at temperatures of about 300º Celsius in pyroclastic surges. It is known that there were about six pyroclastic surges, with some periods of calm between them. This may have caused people to stay instead of looking for safe places to go. During the explorations, many paintings about old Pompeii _______ , too. They showed how the landscape by _______the powerful eruption.