Minneapolis Institute of Art

Campo Vaccino, Forum Romanum

Giovanni Battista PiranesiLinkedCulture matchlcp-4ee1b5daa952

Date: 1772
Medium: Etching with drypoint
Department: European Art
Institution: Minneapolis Institute of Art
Object ID: 55204

From the Minneapolis Institute of Art record

By Piranesi’s day, the grand Roman Forum had become the Campo Vaccino—the “cow field.” Three columns topped by a bit of crumbling entablature were all that remained of the Temple of Castor and Pollux, twins known as the Gemini. According to legend, the brave brothers helped the young republic defeat the last of Rome’s tyrant kings. The temple was dedicated in the year 6 CE. At the far left is the Temple of Antoninus and Faustina, completed in 141 CE. Emperor Antoninus dedicated it to his deceased and deified wife, Faustina. For a sense of scale, note that its columns are 56 feet—or about five stories—tall. The pagan structure was largely preserved because centuries later it was converted into a church. In the distance, we can see the Colosseum, the huge ancient Roman amphitheater, and the Basilica of Constantine. Italy, Europe

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Provenance & credit

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Credit line: The William M. Ladd Collection Gift of Herschel V. Jones, 1916

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The Forum Romanum, or Campo Vaccino, from the Capitol, with the Arch of Septimius in the foreground left, Temple of Vespian right, and the Colosseum in the distance (Veduta di Campo Vaccino)

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