Artwork Page for The Prisons: A Prison Door

Details / Information for The Prisons: A Prison Door

The Prisons: A Prison Door

1745–1750

Giovanni Battista Piranesi

(Italian, 1720–1778)
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Culture
Italy, 18th century
Medium
etching
Credit Line
Dudley P. Allen Fund 1941.26.7
Catalogue raisonné
Focillon 32 ; Hind 9
State
H. I/III
Public Domain
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Location
Not on view
Print
A vertically oriented etching depicts a monumental architectural interior with a massive stone structure at the center. Above, thick wooden beams crisscross beneath a wide, dark arch. Hatching creates deep shadows across the foreground, while light illuminates the background. Small, sketchy figures stand in the lower corners, dwarfed by the towering structure. Dense line work and cross-hatching texture the weathered stone and heavy timbers throughout.

The Prisons: A Prison Door

1745–1750

Giovanni Battista Piranesi

(Italian, 1720–1778)
Italy, 18th century

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