View of the Mausoleum of the Emperor Hadrian (Now called Castel S. Angelo) [Veduta del Mausoleo d’Elio Adriano (ora chiamato Castello S. Angelo)]

Part of Piranesi’s “Vedute di Roma” series, this etching shows what had become of Emperor Hadrian’s Mausoleum in the 18th-century. Hadrian spearheaded the construction of the mausoleum between 135 and 139 CE, as an honor to himself and his successors after their death. Located on the Tiber River, the structure now serves as a museum for military history, but in Piranesi’s time, it was used as a prison and military barracks. Consistent with his other works, Piranesi contrasts the building for what it once was with what it became: a breeding ground for societal decay. Etchings of violent acts, such as the man about to decapitate another man, communicates how the esteemed building devolved into a realm of cruelty.

Arthur M. Hind (Author), Giovanni Battista Piranesi: A Critical Study, with a List of His Published Works and Detailed Catalogues of the Prisons and the Views of Rome, Da Capo Press, New York, 1967, ©1922

Henri Focillon (Author), Giovanni-Battista Piranesi: Essai de Catalogue Raisonné de Son Oeuvre, Librairie Renouard, Henri Laurens, Paris, 1918

Piranesi's Rome: Views of the Eternal City, Luther W. Brady Art Gallery, Olivia Kohler-Maga, September 04, 2024 - December 07, 2024