"Volcanic travels" and the development of volcanology in 18th century Europe

The aim of this paper is to provide an overview of the different ways of travelling through a volcanic region and studying a volcano - in order to describe its lithological, mineralogical and geological features - particularly in the second half of the 18th century. The increasing amount of data collected in the field during these travels, as well as the suggested interpretations of the volcanic phenomena in the Mediterranean region, also contributed to the European debate on the formation and on the age of the Earth's surface.