Plate 53, volcanic rock from Solfatara

This is plate 53 of the Sir William Hamilton, Campi Phlegraei, 'Fields of Flame'. The volume is composed of Hamilton's observations of the volcanic activities of the Vesuvius between 1766 and 1776.

The plate was painted by British artist Pietro Fabris (1740-1790), who accompanied Hamilton around Mount Etna, Mount Vesuvius, and Lipari islands to document volcanic activities.
Hamilton was the British Envoy Extraordinary to the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, and took observations of the erupting Vesuvius which he sent to the Royal Society. He was elected to the Society on the merit of his observations in 1766 and received the Copley Medal in 1770 for his 'Account of a Journey to Mount Etna'. Campi Phlegraei was composed of letters sent to the then President of the Royal Society, John Pringle (1707-1782), and the accounts were communicated at the Royal Society's meetings.