Philip Hofer collection of Piranesi Vedute di Roma etchings
Overview
Collection of etchings by Piranesi from the series Vedute di Roma and Antichitae Romane
Dates
- Creation: circa 1742-1784
Language of Materials
Collection material is in Italian
Conditions Governing Access
There are no restrictions on physical access to this material. Collection is open for research.
This collection/a portion of this collection is shelved offsite at the Harvard Depository. Retrieval requires advance notice. Readers should check with Houghton Public Services staff to determine what material is offsite and retrieval policies and times.
Extent
2 linear feet (2 boxes)Collection includes etchings (with some extra impressions) by Piranesi from the series "Vedute di Roma and "Antichità Romane de'Tempi della Repubblica. Antchità romane fuori di roma disegnate ed incise da Giambat'ta Piranesi, architetto veneziano", parts I and II; and incomplete vol. 5 of "Opere varie di Architectura, prospettive, groteschi, antichità", with missing cover; title pages and frontispiece of later publications of Piranesi's etchings.
Collection also includes title page by Antonio Acquaroni of "Rome: Pantheon Collosseum, Forum Romanum, Pyramid, Trajans Column".
Reference numbers provided for some prints according to Hind, Arthur Mayger, 1880-1957. "Giovanni Battista Piranesi : a critical study, with a list of his published works and detailed catalogues of the prisons and the views of Rome" and Henri Focillon. "Giovanni-Battista Piranesi: Essai de Catalogue Raisonné de son Oeuvre".
Biographical / Historical
Giovanni Battista Piranesi (1720-1778) was an Italian artist famous by his etchings of Rome. Vedute di Roma and Antichitae Romana created in his print workshop in Rome were among his most famous series of prints.
Philip Hofer (1898-1984) was a book collector, founder and curator of Department of printed and graphic arts at Houghton Library. His collection of Italian books was considered finest outide of Italy.
Arrangement
Material is arranged alphabetically by title of prints
Physical Location
HD
Immediate Source of Acquisition
No accession number. Bequest of Philip Hofer, 1984.
Processing Information
Processed by Irina Klyagin, 2019
- Title
- Hofer, Philip, 1894-1984, collector. Philip Hofer collection of Piranesi Vedute di Roma etchings, 1742-1784 (MS Typ 1241): Guide.
- Status
- completed
- Author
- Houghton Library, Harvard University.
- Date
- 2019 February 28
- Description rules
- dacs
- Language of description
- und
- EAD ID
- hou03100
Repository Details
Part of the Houghton Library Repository
Houghton Library is Harvard College's principal repository for rare books and manuscripts, archives, and more. Houghton Library's collections represent the scope of human experience from ancient Egypt to twenty-first century Cambridge. With strengths primarily in North American and European history, literature, and culture, collections range in media from printed books and handwritten manuscripts to maps, drawings and paintings, prints, posters, photographs, film and audio recordings, and digital media, as well as costumes, theater props, and a wide range of other objects. Houghton Library has historically focused on collecting the written record of European and Eurocentric North American culture, yet it holds a large and diverse number of primary sources valuable for research on the languages, culture and history of indigenous peoples of the Americas, Africa, Asia and Oceania.
Houghton Library’s Reading Room is free and open to all who wish to use the library’s collections.
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