Observations on Mount Vesuvius, Mount Etna, and Other Volcano's: in a series of letters addressed to the Royal Society from the Honorable Sir William Hamilton, London, T. Cadell, 1774.

{These original letters use the old style letter s, which is much like an f. I t has been retained here although a letter f has been used for this s The computer does not support the f with only the left half ot the cross-bar which is the letter s which was used in this document] Pages 168-173, which follow the front page and introductory pages from the editor to the public, are references to the numbers on the map, [Plate VI] The map and references to the map, [Plate VI] were also published (without footnotes) in the Proceedings of the Royal Society. London.

. ~

       O B S E R V A T I O N S

		     O N

     M O U N T  V E S U V I U S
		
	      MOUNT ETNA

      AND  OTHER VOLCANO'S:

-~  .		   I N

         A SERIES OF LETTERS,

  Addreffed to T H E  R O YA L  S O C I E T Y,

       from the Honourable Sir W. HAMILTON,
                              K.B. F.R.S.

His Magefty's Envoy Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
           	at the Court of N A P L E S,

               To which are added,

     Explanatory Notes by the A U T H O R
            hitherto unpublifhed,

	    	  A NEW EDITION


                L O N D O N,
  Printed for T. CA D E L L, in the Strand,
                  	       MDCCLXXIV,
           
 __

     T H E  E D I T O R

		TO

	 THE PUBLIC

     HAVING mentioned to Sir
     WILLIAM HAMILTON the
     general Defire of all Lovers of Natu
     ral Hiftory, that his Letters upon the
     Subject of Volcanoes should be col-
     leflced together in one Volume, par-
     ticularly for the Convenience of fuch
     as may have an Opportunity of vifit
     ing the curious Spots defcribed in
     them: He was not only pleafed to 
     __
     iv
     approve of my having undertaken, 
     this Pub1ication, but has likewife.  
     favoured with the additional explana-
     tory Notes and Drawings,

        The PUBLIC "S  moft obliged,

		and devoted:

         			 humble  .Servant


				T.  CADELL

May 30, 1772.

____

168

1. Naples 2. Porticii 3. Refina, under which Herculaneum is buried 4. Torre del Greco 5. Hermitage, at which travellers ufually rest, in their way up Mt. Vesuvius 6. St. Angerlo , a convent of Calmaldoece, fituated upon a cone of a mountain formed by an ancient explofion 7. Cones formed by the eruption of 1760, and lava that ran from them almoft into the sea. 8. Mount Vefuvius and Somma 9. Village of Somma 10.The convent of the Madona del Arco, under which lavas have been found at 300 feet depth, and which muft have proceeded from the mountain of Somma, when an active Volcano. ____

169

11. Ottaiano, I2, Torre del Annunziata, 13. Caftel a Mare, neear whch the ancient town of Stabia is buried, and where Pliny the elder loft his life, I4. Vico, 15. Sorrento and the plain formed evidently. by fubterraneous fire. 16. Mafia. 17. Island of Caprea. 18. Thee.Grotto of .Paufilipo, cut through the mountain anciently, to make a road from Naples to Puzzole. 19. Point of Paufilipo. 20. The Gaiola, where there are ruins of ancient buildings, fuppofed to have belonged to Lucullus. 21. The ifland of Niflda, evidently formed by explofion. 22. The Lazaret, 23. The Bagnoli. 24. Puzzole or Pozzuolo, __

170 25. The Solfaterra, anciently called Forum Vulcani: between the Solfaterra and the lake of Agnano, are the boiliiig waters of the Pfciarelli. 26. The New Mountain, formed by explofion in the year 1538; the fand of the fea fhore at its bafis burning hot. 27. The lake of Agnano, fuppofed the crater of an ancient Volcano: here are the baths called St. Germano, and the famous Grotto del Cane. 28. Aftruni, whlch has been evidently a Volcano, and is now a Royal Chace, the crater being furrounded with a wall. 29. The Monte Gauro or Barbaro, ancientIy a Volcano. 30. The lake of Avernus, evidently the crater of an ancient Volcano. 31. Lake of Fufaro. 32. Point of Mifenum, from whence Pliny the elder difcovered the eruption of Vefiuvius that proved fatal to him; near this place, in a vault of an ancient building, is a conftant vapour, or Mofete, of the fame quality with that of the Grotto del Cane. ____

171

33. The Mare Morto, the ancient Roman Harbour, 34. Baïaut;a; behind the caftle are two evident craters of ancient Volcanos. 35. Ifland of Procita. 36. A perfect cone and crater of a Volcano near Caftiglione in the ifland of Ifchia. 37. Lava that ran into the fea in the laft eruption on this ifland, in the year 1301, or 1302: The place now called Le Cremate 38. Town of Irchia and caflcle. 39. Lake of Licola. 40. Lake of Patria. 41. The river Volturnus. 42. Capua, 43. Caferta. 44. Averra, 45. Mataloni. ____

172

46. Acerra. 47. Ifland of Ifchia. anciently called AEnaria, Inarime, and Pithecufa. 48. The.mountain of St. Nicola, anciently called Mons Epomeus, fuppofed the remains of the principal Volcano of the ifland. 49. Caftiglione, near which are the baths of Gurgitelli. . 50. Lacco, near whichi is that very cold vapour called by the natives ventarole. 5I. Ancient city of Pompeii, where his Sicilian Majefty's excavations are carrying on at prefent. 52, Rovig;iano 53. River of Sarno. . 54. Cuma. 55. Hot fands and fudatory called Nero's baths. 56. The Lucrine lake, fuppofed to have been here, and of which th┴e is ftill fome little remain . 57. Villa Angelica, Sir William Hamiilton's villa, from whence he has made many of his obfervations upon Mount Vefuvius _______

173

58. Cones formed by an ancient eruption called viuli. here are likewife cold vapours called ventaroli. 59. High grounds probably fections of cones of ancient Volcanos, being all compofed of tufa and ftrata of loofe pumice and burnt matter. 60. Plain of the Campagna Felice, four or five feet of excellent foil, under which are strata of burnt and erupted matter.

________

Return to The Electronic Volcano

Latest Version, June 15, 1995