Life and death in Pompeii and Herculaneum: in pictures

A wall painting of the baker Terentius Neo and his wife, from his house in Pompeii, AD 50-79 Photograph: Soprintendenza Speciale per i Beni Archeologici di Napoli e Pompei

A Roman gold bracelet in the form of a coiled snake, first century AD Photograph: The Trustees of the British Museum

Carbonised wooden cradle, from the House of MPP Granianus, Herculaneum, first century AD Photograph: Soprintendenza Speciale per i Beni Archeologici di Napoli e Pompei

Plaster cast of a dog, from the House of Orpheus, Pompeii, AD 79 Photograph: Soprintendenza Speciale per i Beni Archeologici di Napoli e Pompei

Bronze statue of a woman fastening her dress, from the Villa of the Papyrii, Herculaneum, first century BC - first century AD Photograph: Soprintendenza Speciale per i Beni Archeologici di Napoli e Pompei

Satyr and maenads, marble wall panel, from the House of the Dionysiac Reliefs, Herculaneum, 1st century AD Photograph: Soprintendenza Speciale per i Beni Archeologici di Napoli e Pompei

Wall painting of Flora, goddess of fertility and abundance, or Primavera, the embodiment of spring, from the Villa Arianna, Stabiae, first century AD Photograph: Soprintendenza Speciale per i Beni Archeologici di Napoli e Pompei

Mosaic of a guard dog, from the House of Orpheus, Pompeii, 55-59 AD Photograph: Soprintendenza Speciale per i Beni Archeologici di Napoli e Pompei

A fresco that once decorated a garden room at the House of the Golden Bracelet in Pompeii hangs at the British Museum Photograph: Ray Tang/Rex Features

Marble statues of dogs attacking two stags are displayed at the exhibition Photograph: Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images

A detail of a large fresco shows the head of a decapitated woman Photograph: Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images

Archaeologists used a casting technique to preserve the forms of victims. These casts of a family from Pompeii, killed by extreme heat following the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in AD 79, lie in the 'pugilist' pose caused by the tendons contracting at high temperature Photograph: Carl Court/AFP/Getty Images

A mosaic of a skeleton holding two jugs Photograph: Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images

A carbonised loaf of bread dating back to the first century AD Photograph: Andy Rain/EPA

A golden snake amulet weighing 600 grams with a medallion of Luna, the moon goddess, part of a set of jewellery that once belonged to a wealthy family Photograph: Carl Court/AFP/Getty Images

A bronze colander shows the name of the artisan who made it Photograph: Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images

A visitor examines statues of priestess Eumachia, left, found in Pompeii, and Empress Livia, right, found in the ruins of Herculaneum Photograph: Lefteris Pitarakis/AP

Guard dog mosaic from the House of Orpheus, Pompeii, AD 55-59 Photograph: Ray Tang/Rex Features