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Visit
Open today 10:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m.
Admission is always free

6th and Constitution Ave NW
Washington, DC 20565

Sculpture Garden Extended Hours

Open late until 8:00 p.m. on select nights
Through September 5
Exhibitions & Events
America’s 250th

Celebrating American art and artists
Art & Artists
Open Call

Artists Reimagining the Collection
Meet the 50 makers selected from more than 1,600 submissions

The Grand Piazza

published 1749/1750

Giovanni Battista Piranesi

Associated Names

Giovanni Battista Piranesi

Artist, Venetian, 1720 - 1778

The image shows a stone archway leading to a detailed bridge structure. The bridge is intricately carved and stretches across the scene. Swirling clouds can be seen in the sky beyond the bridge. The horizon is partially hidden, revealing hints of a cityscape with towers. The brushstrokes are varied, with heavier lines for the arch and lighter strokes for the sky. The color scheme is grayscale, emphasizing contrast and shading.

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Artwork overview

Medium

etching, engraving, sulphur tint or open bite, burnishing
Credit Line

W.G. Russell Allen, Ailsa Mellon Bruce, Lessing J. Rosenwald, and Pepita Milmore Funds
Accession Number

1976.35.3
Catalogue Raisonné

Robison 1986, no. 31, State i/vi

Artwork history & notes

Bibliography

1918

Focillon 27.

1922

Hind 4.

1986

Robison, Andrew. Piranesi Early Architectural Fantasies: A Catalogue Raisonne of the Etchings. Washington: National Gallery of Art; Chicago and London: The University of Chicago Press, 1986.

Watermarks

Fleur-de-lis (Robison 5)

Wikidata ID

Q65568923

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