The columns of the Temple of Antoninus to right, a part of the Campo Vaccino in center and at left, along with various animals and figures, the Palatine ruins in the background, from 'Six large views, four of Rome, and two of the Roman countryside' (Six grandes vues, dont quatre de Rome et deux de la Campagne romaine)

Art Historical Context

In Stefano della Bella's etching *The columns of the Temple Antoninus to right, a part of the Campo Vacc in center and at left along with various animals and, the Palatine ruins the background* (1656), the artist captures the evocative ruins of ancient Rome with remarkable detail. This work is part of his series *Six large views, of Rome, and two of the Roman countryside*, showcasing the eternal city's layered history. To the right rise the sturdy columns of the Temple of Antoninus and Faustina, a 2nd-century AD structure repurposed as a church; the central Campo Vaccino—once the Roman Forum, now a grazing ground ("cow field") dotted with animals and figures—evokes the pastoral decay of antiquity amid everyday life; and the distant Palatine Hill ruins frame the scene with imperial grandeur. Della Bella, a masterful 17th-century Italian etcher known for his intricate line work, blends Baroque dynamism with topographic precision, populating the landscape with lively figures and livestock to convey a sense of bustling continuity. Created during Rome's allure for Grand Tour travelers, this print preserves the site's atmosphere for distant admirers, highlighting etching's power to reproduce vast vistas on an intimate scale (plate: 12½ × 11¼ in.). Today, housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Drawings and Prints department (Bequest of Phyllis Massar, 2011), it invites us to ponder Rome's timeless dialogue between ruin and renewal.

About the Artist

Stefano della Bella · 1610–1664

Stefano della Bella (1610-1664) was one of the most prolific and versatile printmakers of the Italian Baroque period, leaving behind 1,052 prints and several thousand drawings that captured the vivid essence of 17th-century European life. Born in Florence on May 18, 1610, to a family of artists, he trained initially as a goldsmith before studying painting under Cesare Dandini and etching under Rem...