Speculum Romanae Magnificentiae: Fountain and Gardens of the Villa d'Este at Tivoli
Medium
Etching; first state of two (Robert-Dumesnil)
Dimensions
sheet: 12 3/16 x 16 3/4 in. (31 x 42.5 cm) mount: 16 7/8 x 22 1/8 in. (42.8 x 56.2 cm)
Classification
Prints
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Harris Brisbane Dick Fund, 1941
Accession Number
41.72(3.66)
Rights
Public Domain
Tags
Art Historical Context
This etching from 1575 captures the celebrated gardens and fountains of the Villa d’Este in Tivoli, one of the most ambitious landscape projects of the Italian Renaissance. Created by Etienne DuPérac and published by Antonio Lafreri, the print belongs to the celebrated series *Speculum Romanae Magnificentiae* (“Mirror of Roman Magnificence”), a collection of views that documented both ancient ruins and contemporary wonders for an international audience of travelers and collectors. DuPérac’s precise line work highlights the dramatic terraced layout, cascading water features, and sculptural program that made the villa a marvel of hydraulic engineering and artistic patronage under Cardinal Ippolito II d’Este. As an etching—the first of two states—the image could be reproduced in quantity, allowing viewers across Europe to study the inventive garden design that influenced later landscape traditions. Today the print offers a rare, detailed record of the villa’s original sixteenth-century appearance, preserving the Renaissance ideal of nature shaped by human ingenuity and artistic vision.
About the Artist
Etienne DuPérac|Antonio Lafreri · 1535–1604
Comment on works: architect; painter