Very unusual view with a cut-away to reveal the interior of this famous erupting volcano. The city of Catania is shown in the foreground. This is from Kircher's masterpiece, Subterranean World, an immense and amazing work covering all aspects of anything that dwelled or occurred within the earth's interior - from dragons, to fossils, to mountain springs, earthquakes, and volcanoes. Kircher's work was the first serious effort to describe the physical makeup of the earth, proposing theories (sometimes fantastic) in the areas of physics, geography, geology, and chemistry. It was, in part, based on Kircher's observations of the eruptions of Etna, Stromboli and Vesuvius in 1637-38.

References:

Condition: B+

A fine impression on watermarked paper with a tiny hole caused by a paper flaw to the right of the smoke, a few extraneous creases at top, and some small chips confined to blank margins that have been professionally repaired with old paper. Narrow top margin.