Magnificent bridge with loggias, and arches erected by a Roman Emperor

A large arch frames a view of a colonnaded bridge with loggias and stepped piers rising from the water. Small boats float beneath, and an obelisk and a smaller arched bridge recede into the hazy distance under a pale sky.

Look closer: Tiny figures and boats sit at the water's edge beneath the arch, and vines hang from the top of the arch.

Artist

Giovanni Battista Piranesi

Date

ca. 1750

Medium

Etching

Source

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Size

3628 × 2649 px

Credit (appreciated, not required for public-domain works): The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Harris Brisbane Dick Fund, 1937