Antique vase of marble (Villa Albani) 

This etching by Giovanni Battista Piranesi, a renowned Italian artist known for his architectural and archaeological prints, depicts an antique marble vase. The inscription indicates that the vase is located at the Villa Albani, a grand estate just outside Rome. Piranesi’s masterful use of line and shading captures the classical elegance of the vase, which rests upon a base adorned with winged lion sculptures, a motif popular in Roman art. The intricate details of the vase, the lion's postures, and the delicate rendering of the marble surface reveal Piranesi's keen eye for observation and his exceptional skill in creating highly realistic etchings. This print, likely part of a larger series exploring the antiquities of Rome, exemplifies Piranesi's influence on the revival of classical design and his lasting impact on the field of architectural illustration.