Why is the archioligy site of pomtettii so important to our understanding to life in a roman town?

Pompeii is one of the must-see sights of Italy alongside Herculaneum, a town that also perished when Mount Vesuvius erupted in 79AD. The city is important to us because of the way Vesuvius both destroyed and preserved it, but in the 1st Century AD it had little special significance.