Very unusual view with a cut-away to reveal the interior of Mount Vesuvius erupting with smoke and flames billowing forth. A small village named Portici is shown in the foreground. This is from Kircher's masterpiece, 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 eruption of Vesuvius and the two weeks of earthquakes that shook Calabria in 1638. He suggested the existence of a vast network of underground springs and reservoirs, as well as the theory that subterranean temperatures increase directly in proportion to depth. Published in a Dutch edition of Kircher's famous Subterranean World by Johann Waesberger.

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Condition: A

A nice impression with very minor soiling, one tiny hole in the image, and a soft crease at bottom left. There are a couple of tiny tears along the edges of the sheet that have been archivally repaired.