The artwork titled “The Roman antiquities, t. 4, Plate XXII. View of the Bridge Cestius,” crafted by the artist Giovanni Battista Piranesi, is an etching that belongs to the Neoclassicism art movement. This piece falls within the design genre and is part of the series known as “Le antichità Romane.”
The artwork features a meticulously detailed representation of inscriptions and architectural elements associated with the Bridge Cestius, an ancient Roman bridge. It includes finely etched texts carved in Latin, which are depicted on stone surfaces, highlighting the grandeur and importance of the inscriptions. Alongside the inscriptions, there are architectural blueprints and fragments, exemplifying the precision and scholarly effort typical of Piranesi’s works. The artwork reflects Piranesi’s dedication to documenting Roman antiquities with a high degree of accuracy and artistic skill, embodying the Neoclassical reverence for classical antiquity.
