John J. Gredler Works of Art

Italian Grand Tour Gouache of Mount Vesuvius Erupting at Night

Italian Grand Tour gouache of Mount Vesuvius erupting at night with a full moon over the Bay of Naples. In the original gilt wood frame. This is a very fine and large example of this dynamic scene, in wonderful condition, the colors still vibrant.

A very similar composition, dated 1872, perhaps by the same artist from the collection of Giorgio Marsan and Umberta Nasi, sold at Christie's, London, 13 Dec 2007 sold for GBP 7,500, (USD $15,300). Plus commision.

"Roman molding" gilt wood frame with original gilding. Label on reverse of a 19th century antiques shop in Paris. 

26.5 inches high by 34.5 wide by 2.5 deep 

At the end of the 18th Century and throughout the 19th Century Neapolitan painters specialized in the production of gouaches reproducing the bay of Naples and its surroundings. The most sought after themes for both artists and their clients were the nocturnal eruptions of Vesuvius, symbol of Naples. The present work depicts the spectacular eruption of 1872. 

Pioneering Italian volcanologist Luigi Palmieri was present at the observatory during the eruption and lived to tell the tale. 

"On the third day of Mount Vesuvius’s eruption, physicist Luigi Palmieri found himself isolated between torrents of red-hot lava flowing past his stone-walled workplace, the Vesuvius Observatory, on one of the main slopes of the volcano in Italy. Vesuvius bellowed, the ground quaked, and lightning boomed in the immense pine-tree-shaped ash clouds above his head. Searing molten stones rained down on him from the sky. The thermometer on the terrace reached more than 150 degrees Fahrenheit (66 degrees Celsius). Palmieri locked himself inside, but the heat cracked the windows, and a scorching smell filled the baking indoor air. 

The year was 1872, and this was one of Vesuvius’s most devastating recent eruptions. Palmieri had chosen to remain in the building so he could study the cataclysm. He certainly knew he risked dying: several scientists had lost their life to the volcano before, and one of them had died just two days prior. Much farther downhill, panicked civilians fled to Naples, Italy, leaving belongings behind before the lava swallowed their homes. Naples’s residents then fled to Rome as more ash fell. People presumed Palmieri had perished. But he continued to check his instruments and write notes in the roasting building while waiting for his time to venture outside. Palmieri wasn’t just being determined. He was ecstatic. “I really desired to see the expolsion above my head,” he later wrote, seemingly disdainful of the danger. The eruption was a “sensational show,” he added. “Mount Vesuvius was really kind what he sent it to me over the observatory.”

Wear consistent with age and use. Overall very good antique condition. Some old staining on the right hand side close to frame. The frame itself with nicks, scratches minor losses expected with age and use.