
Vesuvius
Gillian Darley(Author)
Harvard University Press
Published on 13. February 2012
Book
Hardback
256 pages
978-0-674-05285-7 (ISBN)
Description
Volcanoes around the world have their own legends, and many have wrought terrible devastation, but none has caught the imagination like Vesuvius. We now know that immense eruptions destroyed Bronze Age settlements around Vesuvius, but the Romans knew nothing of those disasters and were lulled into complacency - much as we are today - by its long period of inactivity. None of the nearly thirty eruptions since AD 79 has matched the infamous cataclysm that destroyed Pompeii and Herculaneum within hours. Nearly two thousand years later, the allure of the volcano remains - as evidenced by its popularity as a tourist attraction, from Shelley and the Romantics to modern-day visitors. Vesuvius has loomed large throughout history, both feared and celebrated. Gillian Darley unveils the human responses to Vesuvius from a cast of characters as far-flung as Pliny the Younger and Andy Warhol, revealing shifts over time. This cultural and scientific meditation on a powerful natural wonder touches on pagan religious beliefs, vulcanology, and travel writing.
Sifting through the ashes of Vesuvius, Darley exposes how changes in our relationship to the volcano mirror changes in our understanding of our cultural and natural environments.
Sifting through the ashes of Vesuvius, Darley exposes how changes in our relationship to the volcano mirror changes in our understanding of our cultural and natural environments.
Reviews / Votes
Most readers will enjoy this attractive little book as an armchair travel guide to Vesuvius along the paths of history. -- David Keymer Library Journal 20120302 A lively biography of the mountain best known for swallowing Pompeii and Herculaneum in 79 A.D...Vesuvius is an entertaining guide to the volcano's impact on European culture, ranging over its influence on religion, science, philosophy, art, literature, and music. -- Amy Henderson Weekly Standard 20120611More details
Series
Language
English
Place of publication
Cambridge, Mass
United States
Target group
Professional and scholarly
US School Grade: College Graduate Student
Product notice
sewn/stitched
Cloth over boards
With printed dust jacket
Illustrations
34 halftones
Dimensions
Height: 184 mm
Width: 114 mm
ISBN-13
978-0-674-05285-7 (9780674052857)
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Schweitzer Classification
Person
Gillian Darley is a writer, broadcaster, and architectural journalist.