Engraving by Tempesta

Just before 1600 CE the artist Antonius Tempesta was commissioned to make a copper engraving of a panoramic view of Rome for the Pope.

The resulting work consisted of twelve sheets, each measuring c. 45×55cm, showing Rome from an imaginary vantage point somewhere above the Janiculum Hill, SW. of the city. It gives a vivid, although sometimes imprecise, impression of Rome around the beginning of the 17th century.

The parts of the engraving shown here are details from a copy of the engraving bought in the Vatican Museums, where the originals are kept. The engraving was made in several versions, first in 1593. The images used here are from the third version from 1606.

Unfortunately, the twelve sheets don’t always align well when mounted together, and the lines between the sheets show on some of the details showed here.

The images here are photographs of the sheets, not scanned images.