Campi Flegrei: Stories of Men and Volcanoes

In the Campanian territory called Campi Flegrei in Italy, volcanic activity determines the area of greatest risk in Europe, both due to the violence of the eruptions that took place and to the high number of people who live there. The lack of eruptions for about 3000 years has allowed its jagged coasts to become safe anchorages and has favored the development of the rich Greek colonies of Cuma and Dicearchia, in the VII century BC, followed by the construction of the port of Puteoli, in the I century BC, the most important commercial and military port of the Roman Empire. However, the volcanic nature of the territory continued to manifest itself with the subsidence of the ground which led to the submersion of the port structures and accelerated the economic decline of the area. The inversion of the movement of the ground, which began in the 1400s and ended with the eruption of Monte Nuovo in 1538, dealt the final blow to the economy and interrupted the frequentation of many thermal springs. Since then, the soil has begun to move downwards, creating new problems for human activities, tackled since the end of the 1800s with industrialization. From 1950, a slow uplift has resumed, with two phases of greater intensity, in 1970-72 and 1982-84, which reminded the community, established around the Gulf for 2500 years, of living in a fragile and dangerous environment. Cohabitation with a territory rich in natural resources, as well as dangers, continues thanks to the resilience of citizens and the improved understanding of volcanic phenomena. Read more