This article was adapted from the original itinerary published on the blog Visit Naples and Amalfi Coast Travel Tips
I could write an entire book about how fascinating it is to explore Pompeii — that ancient Roman city that was completely buried by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 A.D. Every time I walk through its ruins, it’s like stepping into a frozen moment in time. But today, I want to share something on the spookier side of history: cursed objects from Pompeii.
Now, I’m not one for cheesy souvenirs — no “I ♥ Italy” t-shirts for me, and I definitely don’t need a magnet shaped like a Venetian carnival mask. What I do love to collect, though, are rocks. I’ve got rocks from the beaches in Sicily, stones from the Leaning Tower of Pisa, even a few from Florida. Everywhere I go, I pick up at least one rock to remember it by.
That’s exactly why a story I read recently hit a little too close to home. An American woman picked up a few seemingly harmless pieces from Pompeii… and claimed she got cursed because of it.
The “Crime”
I visited Pompeii back in 2019, and while I didn’t see any signs that specifically said don’t pick up rocks, it’s kind of an unspoken rule. I mean, we’re talking about an active archaeological site, not a souvenir shop. Still, the woman in the story ignored that rule and decided to help herself to a few mosaic tiles, a fragment of an ancient vase, and a piece of ceramic wall — stuff that honestly didn’t look all that different from the rocks I usually pocket.
The Curse Begins
As soon as she got back to the U.S., things started to go wrong. She was diagnosed with breast cancer not once but twice before the age of 36. She underwent a double mastectomy. Her family hit hard times financially and struggled to get ahead. To her, it felt like nothing could go right.
Rather than chalking it up to bad luck, she believed the misfortune stemmed from those artifacts she had taken from Pompeii. She became convinced that she had triggered a curse — and the only way to fix things was to return what she had taken.
How She Tried to Reverse the Curse
In a letter she sent along with the artifacts, she admitted she had been “young and dumb.” She wrote, “I wanted to have a piece of history that couldn’t be bought.” But, as she later realized, she had taken something far more powerful — “a piece of history captured in a time with so much negative energy attached to it.”
By removing those items from their resting place, she believed she had invited that negativity into her life. Her letter explained how she hadn’t thought about the pain and tragedy those objects had witnessed or what they meant to the people who once lived in Pompeii.
She Wasn’t Alone
I’ll admit, I wasn’t totally convinced by the idea of a “Pompeii curse” based on just one person’s experience. So, I did a little more digging. Turns out, she wasn’t alone. According to the Archaeological Park of Pompeii, around a hundred people have returned artifacts they took, all claiming similar strings of bad luck. Some mailed back pottery shards. Others sent volcanic rocks or fragments of frescoes. All of them shared the same regret: that they’d taken something they shouldn’t have.
Unfortunately, the park staff can’t return these items to their exact original locations — there’s no way to know where each one came from. Instead, they’re displayed in the Pompeii Antiquarium, along with letters from the remorseful senders. While most of the returned pieces aren’t particularly valuable — they’re often just rubble or tiles — they now have a unique double significance: one from the Roman era when they were created, and another from our time, shaped by modern stories of guilt and superstition.
A Happy Ending (Sort Of)
In a way, it’s comforting to know those items made it back to Pompeii. The park officials have even said that these stories help discourage others from taking artifacts in the future — and that’s definitely a good thing. The article didn’t say whether the American woman’s luck improved after she returned the objects, but I imagine she felt some sense of peace knowing she had made it right.
As for me? I’ll keep collecting rocks — just not from ancient archaeological sites. I’ve learned my lesson: take only pictures, leave only footprints. Because no matter how small or harmless something looks, you never really know what history — or curse — it might carry with it.
