← Giovanni Battista Piranesi Giovanni Battista Piranesi — Iscrizione nei lati del Ponte di Rimino (Inscription on the side of the Rimini Bridge) followed by an index of plates in the volume, from "Antichità Romane de' Tempi della Repubblica, e de' primi Imperatori"

Giovanni Battista Piranesi — Iscrizione nei lati del Ponte di Rimino (Inscription on the side of the Rimini Bridge) followed by an index of plates in the volume, from "Antichità Romane de' Tempi della Repubblica, e de' primi Imperatori"

Iscrizione nei lati del Ponte di Rimino (Inscription on the side of the Rimini Bridge) followed by an index of plates in the volume, from "Antichità Romane de' Tempi della Repubblica, e de' primi Imperatori"

Original title: Iscrizione nei lati del Ponte di Rimino (Inscription on the side of the Rimini Bridge) followed by an index of plates in the volume, from "Antichità Romane de' Tempi della Repubblica, e de' primi Imperatori"

Artist: Giovanni Battista Piranesi
Date: ca. 1748
Medium: Etching
Dimensions: Plate: 9 1/4 × 14 7/16 in. (23.5 × 36.7 cm) Sheet: 13 1/16 × 18 13/16 in. (33.1 × 47.8 cm)
Credit line: Harris Brisbane Dick Fund, 1937

kurzbeschreibung

Giovanni Battista Piranesi made this etching around 1748. It shows an inscription from the Rimini Bridge followed by the volume's plate index. The print belongs to a series documenting Roman antiquities.

Description

A framed section at the top carries the label 'Iscrizione n. 17 Ponte di Rimino'. Below it are several Latin inscriptions relating to the Rimini Bridge, surrounded by sketchy figures and ornaments. Then comes a list titled 'Indice delle Tavole contenute in quest'Opera', enumerating 27 antiquities. The layout feels symmetrical and orderly, with the frame binding the inscriptions and the index together.

Context

Piranesi published this plate in his work 'Antichità Romane de' Tempi della Repubblica, e de' primi Imperatori', which appeared around 1748. The publication focuses on Roman structures and inscriptions, a central concern of eighteenth-century antiquarian research. The Rimini Bridge, a Roman bridge from the first century BC, was regarded as an important testament to ancient engineering.

Impact

Precise lines and the symmetrical arrangement convey a sense of order and scholarship. Inscription and plate index together emphasize the work's documentary aim. Thus it becomes a vivid example of antiquarian knowledge transmission.

Technique

An etching is made by engraving a drawing into a metal plate and biting it with acid. Monochrome gray tones and fine hatching define the print, typical of eighteenth-century printmaking. This process allows a faithful reproduction of the inscriptions and ornaments.

AI-generated description text

Source: Metropolitan Museum of Art · Public Domain (CC0 1.0)