A striking painting depicting the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 1774, created by an artist who is believed to have witnessed the natural disaster firsthand, has achieved a sale price exceeding £25,000 at an auction in Edinburgh.
Auction Details
The artwork, titled An Eruption of Vesuvius in 1774, was painted by German landscape artist Jakob Philipp Hackert. It went under the hammer at Lyon & Turnbull on Wednesday, fetching £25,400 including buyer's premium. The sale was part of the auction house's two-day Five Centuries sale.
Artist's Connection to the Event
According to a biography of Hackert written by his friend, the renowned writer Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, the artist personally witnessed the eruption in Italy. Goethe noted that Hackert courageously produced a series of live sketches and studies of the volcanic activity. Upon returning to Rome, where he had settled in 1768, Hackert used these sketches as reference material to create his paintings of the scene.
Artistic Significance
Romey Clark, associate fine art specialist at Lyon and Turnbull, highlighted the painting's unique qualities. She stated: “Hackert’s depiction is notable for its dramatic immediacy. Flames and molten lava burst violently from the crater while thick clouds of smoke billow upward into the night sky. By positioning the viewer close to the action, Hackert moves away from the traditional panoramic views of Vesuvius. Instead, he offers a more concentrated and immersive vision of the eruption itself. This compositional decision allows him to incorporate figures in the foreground, most likely Grand Tour travellers accompanied by local guides who observe the spectacle from the slopes of the volcano.”
Historical Context
The eruption of 1774 occurred during the height of the Grand Tour, a journey undertaken by wealthy British and European travellers to visit classical sites across Europe. Travellers frequently collected souvenirs to commemorate their experiences, with views of Mount Vesuvius being particularly popular. Hackert (1737-1807) produced multiple paintings of Vesuvius erupting, including the one auctioned on Wednesday, which had been estimated to sell for between £20,000 and £30,000.
Following the sale, Romey Clark expressed delight, saying: “We are delighted such a fascinating, historical work has found a new home with an international collector.”
