The Villa of Maecenas at Tivoli

Series TitleThe Views of Rome

Artist Giovanni Battista Piranesi (Italian, 1720-1778)

Datemid-18th century

MediumEngraving

DimensionsPlate: 17 7/8 × 26 1/4 inches (45.4 × 66.68 cm)

Credit LinePurchase: William Rockhill Nelson Trust

Object number32-69/63

On View

Not on view

Collections

Prints

Terms

Exhibition History

Architecture and Decorative Arts in Prints from the Permanent Collection, The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, MO, March 13-April 10, 1983, no. 29b, as So-called Villa of Maecenas, Tivoli, 1763.

Gallery Label

The galleries of the villa of Maecenas, a friend of the Roman Emperor Augustus, at Tivoli were situated below the temple of the Sybil. In the 18th century, they were incorrectly thought to have been built as stables. Characteristically, the artist has enhanced their grandeur by the use of steep perspective.

Published References

Architecture and Decorative Arts in Prints from the Permanent Collection, The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, MO, March 13-April 10, 1983, p. 5, as So-called Villa of Maecenas, Tivoli, 1763.

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