The Aeo­lian Islands pro­vide an out­stand­ing record of vol­canic island-build­ing and destruc­tion, and ongo­ing vol­canic phe­nom­e­na. Stud­ied since at least the 18th cen­tu­ry, the islands have pro­vid­ed the sci­ence of vul­canol­o­gy with exam­ples of two types of erup­tion (Vul­can­ian and Strom­bo­lian) and thus have fea­tured promi­nent­ly in the edu­ca­tion of geol­o­gists for more than 200 years. The site con­tin­ues to enrich the field of vul­canol­o­gy.