Enlarged and revised second edition of an important geological work on volcanoes in France by the English geologist George Julius Poulett Scrope (1797-1876), "the first scientist to devote most of his life to the study of volcanic activity" (Lockwood). Fascinated with volcanoes from his early youth, he extensively studied volcanoes in France, Italy and Germany, and witnessed the eruption of the Vesuvius in 1822. "Scrope put forward the theory that the earth was hot, cooling and alive with geological movements that produced earthquakes, tectonic plate shifting, volcanoes and huge waves" (Hamilton). In the present work he describes the geology and extinct volcanoes of central France, and area known for its unusual geologic formations, like gorges and cone shaped hills, which according to Scrope was caused by "waves" of volcanic activity.
Slightly browned, with only a few small spots. Binding rubbed along the extremities, slightly worn around the corners and the upper part of hinges. Overall in very good condition. J. Hamilton, Volcano: nature and culture, p. 109; J.P. Lockwood, Volcanoes: global perspectives, p. 33; Ward 2016; Zittel, pp. 209ff.