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Avellino eruption

2nd-millennium BC natural events2nd millennium BCGeography of CampaniaMount VesuviusPlinian eruptions
Prehistoric volcanic eventsVEI-6 eruptionsVolcanic eruptions in Italy
SheridanVesuviusFootprints
SheridanVesuviusFootprints

The Avellino eruption of Mount Vesuvius refers to a Vesuvian eruption in c. 1995 BC. It is estimated to have had a VEI of 6, making it larger and more catastrophic than Vesuvius's more famous and well-documented 79 AD eruption. It is the source of the Avellino pumice (Italian: Pomici di Avellino) deposits extensively found in the comune of Avellino in Campania.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article Avellino eruption (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors, Images).

Avellino eruption
Sentiero n. 4 Parco Nazionale del Vesuvio,

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N 40.816666666667 ° E 14.4 °
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Sentiero n. 4 Parco Nazionale del Vesuvio

Sentiero n. 4 Parco Nazionale del Vesuvio
80040
Campania, Italy
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Mount Vesuvius
Mount Vesuvius

Mount Vesuvius ( viss-OO-vee-əs; Italian: Vesuvio [veˈzuːvjo, -ˈsuː-]; Neapolitan: 'O Vesuvio [o vəˈsuːvjə], also 'A muntagna or 'A montagna; Latin: Vesuvius [wɛˈsʊwi.ʊs], also Vesevius, Vesvius or Vesbius) is a somma-stratovolcano located on the Gulf of Naples in Campania, Italy, about 9 km (5.6 mi) east of Naples and a short distance from the shore. It is one of several volcanoes forming the Campanian volcanic arc. Vesuvius consists of a large cone partially encircled by the steep rim of a summit caldera, resulting from the collapse of an earlier, much higher structure. The eruption of Mount Vesuvius in AD 79 destroyed the Roman cities of Pompeii, Herculaneum, Oplontis, Stabiae, and several other settlements. The eruption ejected a cloud of stones, ashes and volcanic gases to a height of 33 km (21 mi), erupting molten rock and pulverized pumice at the rate of 6×105 cubic metres (7.8×105 cu yd) per second. More than 1,000 people are thought to have died in the eruption, though the exact toll is unknown. The only surviving eyewitness account of the event consists of two letters by Pliny the Younger to the historian Tacitus.Vesuvius has erupted many times since. It is the only volcano on Europe's mainland to have erupted in the last hundred years. It is regarded as one of the most dangerous volcanoes in the world because 3,000,000 people live near enough to be affected by an eruption, with at least 600,000 in the danger zone. This is the most densely populated volcanic region in the world. Eruptions tend to be violent and explosive; these are known as Plinian eruptions.

Basilica of Santa Maria a Pugliano
Basilica of Santa Maria a Pugliano

The Basilica of Santa Maria a Pugliano is the main church in Ercolano and the oldest church in the area around Mount Vesuvius. The church contains two pagan marble sarcophagi from the 2nd and 4th centuries AD, later adapted into Christian altars, probably in the 11th century. There are records of an oratory dedicated to the Virgin Mary in the 11th century on a hill called Pugliano, whose name probably derives from the 'praedium pollianum', a farm on the outskirts of Ercolano belonging to someone called Pollio or Pollione. One noblewoman in Naples in 1076 left legacies to various churches in the city as well as to 'S.Maria at Pugnanum tari 8'. Her will is the oldest document that confirms the existence and the high reputation of the church in the 11th century. During the following centuries the church's popularity increased more and more and pilgrims flooded here from everywhere. In the early years after the Council of Trent the church obtained formal acknowledgement of its eminence: in 1574 was first mentioned as "basilica"; two years later became the parish church of Resina and Portici and by papal bull on 13 June 1579 Pope Gregory XIII confirmed the plenary indulgences of his predecessors to the pilgrims visiting the church on the first Friday of March, Easter Day and 15 August, Assumption day. In that century main works were made to enlarge and embellish the church. During the eruption of 1631 the churc was miraculously spared by the lava. Some years later a new street (via Pugliano) was built on the solidified lava to easily reach the church from the town centre. On 18 October 1849 Pope Pius IX, hosted in the royal palace of Portici by the king of Naples during his exile from Rome, visited the basilica. The church is worth a visit for its remarkable history and art treasures: the massive 36-meter high belfry from the end of the 16th century is one of the oldest of the area. Inside the church, there are sarcophagi from the 2nd and 4th centuries AD, that prove the existence of inhabitants in the area of Herculaneum in the aftermath of the eruption in AD 79; the exquisite wooden statues of Madonna di Pugliano and Black Crucifix, both of the 14th century; the font of 1425, one of the oldest outside the cathedral of Naples; the high altar, of the 16th century; the wooden bust of St. Januarius of the 17th century, the magnificent wooden pulpit of 1685, coeval to the wooden choir and behind the altar. Most of the paintings were made by local artists in the 16th and 17th centuries. The Madonna di Pugliano is worshipped since ever, but before the statue of the 14th century the painted Byzantine-like Madonna di Ampellone was venerated. The main patronal festival is on 15 August, Assumption Day. A special worship is dedicated to St. Januarius, that is co-patron of Ercolano; the statue of the saint has always been carried in procession during the eruptions of Mt. Vesuvius toward the lava front. A bust of St. Januarius facing Mt. Vesuvius was frequently erected in villas and buildings to protect them by the fury of Mt. Vesuvius.