Eruption of Mount Vesuvius with the Ponte della Maddalena in the Distance
Fascination
Vesuvius from Portici (1776) by Joseph Wright of Derby, one of many foreign artists who traveled to Vesuvius. Art collection of the Huntington Library in Pasadena, CA.
“Our eyes with momentary anguish smart
And nature trembles at the Power of Art
May thy bold colours claiming endless praise
For ages shine with undiminish’d blaze
And when the fierce Vesuvius burns no more
May the red deluge down thy canvas pour.”
-William Hayley, from An Essay on Painting, 1778
During the 18th century, it was very common for aristocratic young men to finish their education by traveling through the cultural and historical centers of Europe, a journey known as the Grand Tour. The trip usually began in London and went as far south as Naples. There they joined international artists, poets, and scientists attracted by the frequent eruptions of Vesuvius during this period.
While Pierre-Jacques Volaire, who created the painting in this gallery, traveled to Vesuvius to depict the eruption on canvas, 18th-century geologists were drawn to the site to gather evidence for their scientific publications distributed across Europe. One professor’s account observed that the eruption of 1788 was so hot that he “was obliged to change [his] shoes, the others being half burnt.” Under fire from volcanic projectiles, the same geologist humorously remarked, “I do not deny that these experiments are difficult, offensive, and dangerous, but what experiment on mountains which vomit forth fire can be undertaken perfectly free from inconvenience and fear of danger?”