Academicians and academies in eighteenth-century Naples

The academies make it possible to trace the transformations that took place in eighteenth-century Neapolitan society, and their history illuminates the role played by Freemasonry throughout the Enlightenment. They promoted dialogue between professional corporations and the establishment, as the former experimented with new training and production methods. Natural history played a crucial role, investigating the territory in terms of both space and time and accumulating knowledge and resources which could benefit the nation. The area around Vesuvius became a laboratory where scientists, enquirers into natural phenomena and antiquaries worked side by side, while Naples established itself as the capital of research into archaeology and natural history. © 2007 Oxford University Press. All rights reserved