Giovanni Battista Piranesi (Italian, 1720-1778)
published by Francesco (Italian, 1758-1810) and Pietro Piranesi (Italian, born 1758/59)
The Pyramid of Gaius Cestius, from Views of Rome
INV-4821
Giovanni Battista Piranesi (Italian, 1720-1778)
published by Francesco (Italian, 1758-1810) and Pietro Piranesi (Italian, born 1758/59)1750/59, published 1800–07
The Pyramid of Gaius Cestius, from Views of Rome
Giovanni Battista Piranesi (Italian, 1720-1778) published by Francesco (Italian, 1758-1810) and Pietro Piranesi (Italian, born 1758/59) →etchingprint
Date
1750/59, published 1800–07
Medium
Etching on heavy ivory laid paper
Dimensions
Image: 38.7 × 53.1 cm (15 1/4 × 20 15/16 in.); Plate: 39.2 × 53.6 cm (15 7/16 × 21 1/8 in.); Sheet: 47.5 × 60.9 cm (18 3/4 × 24 in.)
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Location
Chicago, IL
Credit
The Charles Deering Collection
One of two Piranesi engravings of the Pyramid of Cestius, this etching was published posthumously by the artist’s sons. The pyramid was essential viewing for many who undertook the Grand Tour in the 18th and 19th centuries. Constructed c. 18 b.c./c. 12 b.c. as a tomb for the powerful Roman magistrate Gaius Cestius, the marble-clad structure is reminiscent of the Roman fad for all things Egyptian. In fact, the similarity of the tomb to the pyramids of Nubia suggests that Cestius served on a military campaign in Egypt. Today Cestius’s well-preserved tomb remains Rome’s only existing ancient Egyptian-style pyramid.
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