The Arch of Septimius Severus, with the Church of S. Martina on the right (Arco di Settimio Severo), from "Vedute di Roma"
ca. 1759
Medium
Etching; first state
Dimensions
plate: 14 5/8 x 22 5/8 in. (37.2 x 57.4 cm) sheet: 19 5/16 x 25 15/16 in. (49.1 x 65.9 cm)
Classification
Prints
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Harris Brisbane Dick Fund, 1937
Accession Number
37.45.3(63)
Tags
Art Historical Context
Giovanni Battista Piranesi's etching *The Arch of Septimius Severus, with the Church of S. Martina on the right*, from his renowned series *Vedute di Roma* (ca. 1759), captures the majestic ruins of ancient Rome in exquisite detail. This first-state impression showcases the towering triumphal arch erected in 203 CE by Emperor Septimius Severus to celebrate victories in Parthia, flanked by the Baroque Church of Saints Luca e Martina. Piranesi, a master of the vedutismo genre—topographical views blending precision with drama—immerses viewers in Rome's layered history, where antiquity meets later...
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...