Giovanni Battista Piranesi, The Pyramid of Gaius Cestius, 1756, Engraving

Description

Giovanni battista piranesi view of the tomb of cajo cestio 1756 circa, large format neoclassical etching on copper depicting the … more Giovanni battista piranesi view of the tomb of cajo cestio 1756 circa, large format neoclassical etching on copper depicting the pyramid built between 18 and 12 bc. As a tomb for gaius cestius epulone. In good condition with reduced margins, the engraving is printed on a sheet of laid paper whose engraved part measures mm. 385 x 535 and comes with cardboard in a modern frame.
at the bottom right the legend with the : 1. Land cleared around the pyramid under the pontificate of alexander vii; 2. Open door of that time in the pyramid; columns found in the clearing and placed in their ancient position; 4. Walls of rome; 5.towers of the porta di s. Paolo. Under the legend we find at the author and piranesi f.
the of the various elements present in the engraving, such as the ground around the pyramid, the rediscovered columns and the open door, enriches the understanding of the scene represented and allows us to appreciate piranesi's work as an important documentary source.

giovanni battista piranesi was one of the most important engravers and architects of the 18th century, known for his works depicting roman ruins and ancient architecture. His engraving of the pyramid of gaius cestius, made around 1756, is an extraordinary example of his style and attention to detail; piranesi was born in morano di mestre on 4 october 1720 and died in rome on 9 november 1778. Some have nicknamed him the rembrandt of architecture.

this artist not only reproduced the ancient vestiges of rome's power, but was also one of the most authoritative archaeologists of his era. He was a pupil of scalfarotto, of the brothers giuseppe and domenico valeriani, he was also a pupil of bibiena. He worked and had giuseppe vasi as his teacher with whom he had a very conflictual relationship, in fact it seems that he wanted to kill him due to the envy that vasi had towards him, for example he did not sufficiently teach him the secrets of biting. It is believed that he also worked on the painting with tiepolo. His first work was “le antichità romane” which was followed by numerous works. He engraved around 2000 branches, almost all of them large. Despite a great reputation and magnificent fame, he never became rich due to the very low prices of his works. He was a member of the order of christ and the society of antiquaries of london.
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