Title Plate

published 1750/1758

Giovanni Battista Piranesi

Associated Names
Giovanni Battista Piranesi

Artist, Venetian, 1720 - 1778

The image depicts an engraving of an architectural interior. The scene includes classical architectural elements such as stone stairs, archways, and hanging chains. The structure is complex and detailed, with various decorations like rings and garlands. A stone plaque with inscriptions is shown, with a seated figure above it. The architectural space combines reality with surreal elements, creating a sense of confinement and vast open spaces. The style is reminiscent of Giovanni Battista Piranesi.

Media Options

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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    etching, engraving, sulphur tint or open bite

  • Credit Line

    Rosenwald Collection

  • Dimensions

    plate: 54 x 41.3 cm (21 1/4 x 16 1/4 in.)
    sheet: 59.6 x 45.6 cm (23 7/16 x 17 15/16 in.)

  • Accession Number

    1946.21.389

  • Catalogue Raisonné

    Robison 1986, no. 29, State ii/ix

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

one of set of 13 prints (NGA 1946.21.389-401) purchased by Lessing J. Rosenwald, Philadelphia, from William H. Schab, 4 October 1946 (JYAE; 46.193); gift to NGA, 1946.

Associated Names

Bibliography

1918

  • Focillon 24.

1922

  • Hind 1.

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.

1996

  • Obras Maestras de la National Gallery of Art. Exh. cat. Museo Nacional de Antropologia, Mexico City, 1996: 130-133. (note: identified incorrectly as La torre redonda 1976.35.2).

Watermarks

Fleur-de-lis (Robison 5)

Wikidata ID

Q65072771

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