Why is Pompeii famous?

Pompeii is famous for several reasons, but the biggest attraction for tourist and scientists is the well-preserved artifacts that give insight into the life of people in ancient Rome. The preservation was due to the eruption of Mount Vesuvius, which buried the town in 25 meters of tephra, a mix of lava, ash and other materials produced by a volcano.

The majority of people killed in the eruption were killed by the heat rather than lava or ash suffocation as previously believed. The bursts of heat produced from the vents was enough to instantly kill a person up to 6 miles away even if they were inside of homes or buildings for protection.