Hadrian's Villa: The Piazza d'Oro (Piazza of Gold) (Veduta degli Avanzi della Circonferenza delle antiche Fabbriche di una delle Piazze della Villa Adriana oggidi chiamata Piazza d'oro)
ca. 1776
Medium
Etching
Dimensions
sheet: 18 5/8 x 24 1/2 in. (47.3 x 62.2 cm)
Classification
Prints
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
The Elisha Whittlelsey Collection, The Elisha Whittelsey Fund, 1960
Accession Number
60.536.10
Tags
Art Historical Context
Step into the sun-drenched ruins of Emperor Hadrian's opulent villa near Tivoli, Italy, captured in Giovanni Battista Piranesi's masterful etching *Hadrian's Villa: Piazza d'Oro* (ca. 1776). This panoramic "veduta" (view) showcases the Piazza of Gold, a lavish courtyard within the sprawling 2nd-century complex designed as Hadrian's private retreat. Built around 118–134 CE, the villa blended Greek, Egyptian, and Roman influences, the emperor's eclectic tastes and imperial power—spaces like this hosted banquets and intellectual gatherings amid intricate mosaics and fountains. Piranesi, a Veneti...
About the Artist
Giovanni Battista Piranesi · 1720–1778
Giovanni Battista Piranesi (1720–1778) was an Italian printmaker, architect, and antiquarian whose visionary etchings of Rome and imaginary prisons revolutionized architectural representation and profoundly influenced both Neoclassicism and Romanticism. Piranesi stands as one of the most important printmakers of the eighteenth century, fundamentally shaping European perceptions of ancient Rome an...