The eruption of Vesuvius in 1774 as interpreted by the English painter, Joseph Wright of Derby following his vist to Italy 1773 - 1775. During his stay in nearby Naples in 1774, Wright was greatly impressed with the activity of the only active volcano in mainland Europe, which has produced some of the continent's largest volcanic eruptions, the most famous being the eruption of 79AD which totally engulfed the Roman cities of Pompei and Herculaneum. During 1774, following a period of increased seismicity, Vesuvius again began to eject moderate amounts of incandescent lava, known as Strombolian eruptions, as part of the eruptive sub-cycle of 1770-1779. Following his visit, Wright painted over thirty views of the exploding volcano during his lifetime.