"The death of Pliny, in which his body was reduced to ash by the flames of Vesuvius." Illustration from 1560. Gaius Plinius Secundus (AD 23 - AD 79), better known as Pliny the Elder, was a Roman author, naturalist, and natural philosopher, as well as naval and army commander of the early Roman Empire, and personal friend of the emperor Vespasian. He wrote an encyclopedic work, Naturalis Historia, which became a model for all other encyclopedias. He died while attempting to rescue a friend and his family from the eruption of Mount Vesuvius that had just destroyed the cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum. The prevailing wind would not allow his ship to leave the shore. His companions attributed his collapse and death to toxic fumes, but they were unaffected by the fumes, so he probably died of natural causes rather than volcanic action.