Was this victim of Pompeii really caught and killed in the act?
Various online theories are claiming that the pictured body of a victim of the Mount Vesuvius eruption near Pompeii was engaged in the act of masturbation and is called The Masturbating Man.
Spreading primarily through Twitter, the photo has attracted a number of jokes concerning this man’s last moments alive, given the pose the man had taken.
Despite the jokes, however, this body isn’t referred to as The Masturbating Man, at least not officially. What’s more, experts doubt that this is the pose the man was in at the exact moment he died, casting severe doubt over his actions at the time when he passed.
The photo actually shows a plaster cast that was uploaded online in June. Using plaster to preserve the fine details of a body is a common technique used by archaeologists and this one was persevered by Prof. Massimo Osanna.
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Most experts agree that the man was killed by a hot pyroclastic surge of hot gases and ash that would have killed most of the residents of Pompeii. As a result of the extreme heat, many of the victim’s muscles would have contracted and stiffened in an effect known as “cadaveric shock”, resulting in strange and bent limb positions.
Italian archaeologist Pier Paolo Petrone says –
The individual in the photo is an adult man, killed by the hot pyroclastic surge with both arms and legs flexed due to the heat,”
This is likely the explanation for this body’s position, as opposed to being interrupted in the middle of a certain act.
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