Archaeologists discovered at Pompeii a cabinet containing jewelry, coins, and cosmetics, preserved from before the eruption of Vesuvius

Archaeologists have discovered in ancient Pompeii a cupboard containing jewelry, 38 bronze coins, cosmetics, and personal items, offering new clues about the daily lives of women in the city before the eruption of Vesuvius in AD 79. The discovery was made in house IX 11, 7, known as the House of Cornelius Maximus, as part of restoration work and efforts to improve public access in the Insula dei Casti Amanti area.

Among the objects are tweezers, a spatula for mixing pigments, a glass balsamarium, a vessel for burning perfumes, a bronze lamp, and containers for household use. Archaeologists also recovered a necklace with at least 24 amulets representing deities such as Bes and Mercury, pine cones, and bunches of grapes. Such objects, called crepundia, may have had a protective or magical role.

The coins were kept in a container woven from plant materials. Their presence suggests that the occupants did not have time to retrieve their belongings, either because they fled or because they died during the catastrophe.