By Katie Hunt, CNN

Photo: AFP / The Archaeological Park of Herculaneum Press Office

Glass rarely forms naturally from organic materials. However, in 2020, researchers discovered a black, glassy substance inside the skull of a person killed during the eruption of Italy's Mount Vesuvius in AD 79.

Now, the scientists say they have worked out the sequence of events that likely killed the victim and led to the formation of the unique and puzzling glass, thought essentially to constitute fossilized brain tissue.

Recovered from the coastal town of Herculaneum, which along with Pompeii was wiped out by the eruption, the remains belonged to an indiv

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