Frontispiece with Statue of Minerva

nationality
Italian
birth-death
1720-1778
Creation date
Collection
Prints
Materials
etching
Dimensions
19 3/4 x 25 1/4 in (plate) 22 x 28 in (sheet)
Not Currently On View
Credit line
Gift of Mr. and Mrs. F. Noble Ropkey
Accession number
74.161
Gallery Label

Piranesi's "Views" were accurate, if aggrandized depictions of the monuments of ancient and modern Rome.  The frontispiece is a composite of ancient fragments evoking a glorious past that time and nature reclaim.

The central armed figure is usually said to be Minerva, but more plausibly, she is Roma, the tutelary goddess of the city, modeled on an ancient prototype set up on the Capitoline hill in a plaza designed by Michaelangelo.

Reproduction of these images, including downloading, is prohibited without written authorization from VAGA.

350 Fifth Avenue, Suite 2820
New York, NY 10118
Tel: 212-736-6666
Fax: 212-736-6767
e-mail: info@vagarights.com
site: http://www.vaga.org/

Tell us what you see

What Others Saw

 

Today's Hours

Today the IMA is open 11 am to 9 pm. ADMISSION IS FREE.

IMA Calendar

Directions to the IMA

Get directions using Google Maps

Type in your zip code OR Your Address (street, city state)