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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 Drawbridge

published 1749/1750

Giovanni Battista Piranesi

Associated Names

Giovanni Battista Piranesi

Artist, Venetian, 1720 - 1778

The image shows a network of intersecting lines and arches creating a complex composition of forms. Staircases and bridges lead to various platforms and structures. Elements resemble cogs, beams, and towers, suggesting connection to architectural or mechanical constructs.

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This object’s media is free and in the public domain. Read our full Open Access policy for images.

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Artwork overview

Medium

etching, engraving, scratching
Credit Line

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

plate: 54.7 x 41.1 cm (21 9/16 x 16 3/16 in.)
sheet: 71.5 x 51.2 cm (28 1/8 x 20 3/16 in.)
Accession Number

1976.35.5
Catalogue Raisonné

Robison 1986, no. 33, State i/vi

Artwork history & notes

Exhibition History

2001

The Unfinished Print, National Gallery of Art, Washington, 2001, repro.

Bibliography

1918

Focillon 30.

1922

Hind 7.

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

Q65568926

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