Marble
University of Notre Dame
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View of Saint Peter’s Square and Basilica, from Views of Rome

Date

1772

Creator

Giovanni Battista Piranesi

Location

Raclin Murphy Museum of Art

One of five views of Saint Peter's Basilica by Piranesi in this series, this view puts the entire piazza on display as it recedes at a slight angle, so that the darkly shaded obelisk might not obscure the basilica's entrance. This oblique perspective is in keeping with contemporary trends in scenography. The foreground is filled with activity. Piranesi included an ornamented horse-drawn coach, which serves to make more emphatic the vertical line created by the dome and obelisk in a horizontal composition. adapted from Sullo, The World of Piranesi: A Multidisciplinary Approach to Learning beyond the Classroom through Italian Language and Culture (Notre Dame, 2010)

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One of five views of Saint Peter's Basilica by Piranesi in this series, this view puts the entire piazza on display as it recedes at a slight angle, so that the darkly shaded obelisk might not obscure the basilica's entrance. This oblique perspective is in keeping with contemporary trends in scenography. The foreground is filled with activity. Piranesi included an ornamented horse-drawn coach, which serves to make more emphatic the vertical line created by the dome and obelisk in a horizontal composition. adapted from Sullo, The World of Piranesi: A Multidisciplinary Approach to Learning beyond the Classroom through Italian Language and Culture (Notre Dame, 2010)
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  • One of five views of Saint Peter's Basilica by Piranesi in this series, this view puts the entire piazza on display as it recedes at a slight angle, so that the darkly shaded obelisk might not obscure the basilica's entrance. This oblique perspective is in keeping with contemporary trends in scenography. The foreground is filled with activity. Piranesi included an ornamented horse-drawn coach, which serves to make more emphatic the vertical line created by the dome and obelisk in a horizontal composition. adapted from Sullo, The World of Piranesi: A Multidisciplinary Approach to Learning beyond the Classroom through Italian Language and Culture (Notre Dame, 2010)
  • One of five views of Saint Peter's Basilica by Piranesi in this series, this view puts the entire piazza on display as it recedes at a slight angle, so that the darkly shaded obelisk might not obscure the basilica's entrance. This oblique perspective is in keeping with contemporary trends in scenography. The foreground is filled with activity. Piranesi included an ornamented horse-drawn coach, which serves to make more emphatic the vertical line created by the dome and obelisk in a horizontal composition. adapted from Sullo, The World of Piranesi: A Multidisciplinary Approach to Learning beyond the Classroom through Italian Language and Culture (Notre Dame, 2010)
Giovanni Battista Piranesi (Italian, 1720 - 1778)
1772
Prints
Etching on thick laid paper
2006.008.010
architecture
basilica
carriages
church
fountains
intaglio prints
obelisk
piazzas
vedute
Not on view, please request access
21 x 30 1/2 in. (53.34 x 77.47 cm)
Gift of Harvey and Rica Simmons Spivack

Our collection information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. If you have spotted an error, please contact Raclin Murphy Museum of Art at RMMACollections@nd.edu.