Lot 820 Dα

The Colosseum was one of the preferred motifs of Roman iconography. The ruins of the monumental structure lent themselves especially well to the depiction of the power and decline of the Roman empire. To the right of the vague outline of a male figure, we see the Meta Sudans, an ancient fountain. In the earlier of these two shots by Caneva, we do not yet see the commemorative marble plaque that was placed between the ground-level arcades and those of the first story during the inaugural celebrations of the rebuilding project begun by Pope Pius IX in late 1852.