Protean view: Mount Vesuvius

Lithograph diorama depicting an eruption of Mt. Vesuvius Description on the image reads: “SPOONER’S PROTEAN VIEWS, MOUNT VESUVIUS // The mountain is first seen on a clear summer’s evening in perfect repose with a thin vapoury cloud ascending from the Crater. On holding the view before a bright light the scene changes to Midnight … an Eruption of the Volcano has taken place which illuminates the surrounding objects with a fiery brightness while the liquid lava is seen streaming down the sides of the mountain” The image is framed by the arch of a building and its columns, with a lute, pillow and book placed on a carpet at the foreground. The figures are dressed in a Victorian Style, potentially 1830s based on the women’s dresses having mutton sleeves and wide necklines. Could also be 1890s as there was a resurgence of the mutton sleeve during this decade.

Part of the Bill Douglas and Peter Jewell Collection