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Open 10:00–5:00

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

Veduta ... delle Terme di Tito

1776

Giovanni Battista Piranesi

Associated Names

Giovanni Battista Piranesi

Artist, Venetian, 1720 - 1778

The image shows the ruins of an ancient structure from a slightly elevated perspective. The horizon is low, with distant hills and trees in the background. A large arch structure occupies the center, with ruined walls and arches extending to the left. Intricate etching techniques depict stone and foliage textures. The color palette is monochromatic in varying shades of brown and sepia. Fragments of sculptural forms and debris are scattered nearby, while small human figures can be seen in the distance. Nature appears to reclaim the architecture, conveying a sense of tranquil decay.

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Artwork overview

Medium

etching on laid paper
Credit Line

Mark J. Millard Architectural Collection, acquired with assistance from The Morris and Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation
Dimensions

plate: 48.7 x 70.3 cm (19 3/16 x 27 11/16 in.)
sheet: 53.8 x 77 cm (21 3/16 x 30 5/16 in.)
Accession Number

1985.61.130
Catalogue Raisonné

Hind 1922, no. 127, State i/iv
Series Title

Vedute di Roma

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

Mark J. Millard, New York; purchased by NGA, 1985.

Associated Names

Millard, Mark Jacob

Bibliography

1918

Focillon, Henri. Giovanni-Battista Piranesi; essai de catalogue raisonne de son oeuvre. Paris: Librairie Renouard, Henri Laurens, 1918.

1922

Hind, Arthur M. Giovanni Battista Piranesi; a critical study with a list of his published works and detailed catalogues of the prisons and the views of Rome. London: Cotswold Gallery; New York: E. Weyhe, 1922.

Inscriptions

lower center in plate: VEDUTA degli Avanzi delle Fabbriche del Secondo / ... / Cav. Piranesi F.; by later hand, lower right in graphite: M 127

Wikidata ID

Q74070382

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