Album 1
arrow left swipe to the left Visible reflectance photograph Verso of the thirty-ninth sheet, Album 1 activate zoom zoom tool
Leaf 39 verso activate zoom zoom tool
Stowe-Vase quer geklebt, Seepferdfriesfragment, Pilasterkapitell activate zoom zoom tool arrow right swipe to the right
activate zoom zoom tool Leaf 40

Works on this double page

  • Visible reflectance photograph with construction lines drawn in different colours
  • Visible reflectance photograph Rough sketch of the so-called Stowe Vase, slightly aligned in the diagonal to the upper right, drawn in black pencil.
  • Visible reflectance photograph Chalk drawing of a pilaster capital depicting a garland strung between bucrania
  • Visible reflectance photograph Black chalk drawing of a fragment of a frieze with seahorses, Eros, dolphins and shell
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Album 1, Leaf 40

The drawing above shows the famous Stowe Vase, named after Stowe House, a historic mansion northeast of Oxford, where it was once displayed. The vase is now held at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. The ancient marble vase measures over two metres in height and was excavated in 1769. It was restored in Piranesi’s workshop and subsequently became a motif in his etchings. Apart from its size, what makes the vessel particularly striking are its handles in the form of writhing snakes. 

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