Resten van de Tempel van Hadrianus te Rome 1747 - 1761

Giuseppe Vasi created this print of the Remains of the Temple of Hadrian in Rome sometime between 1710 and 1782. Vasi, who was born in Sicily but made Rome his home, captured the city's architectural grandeur with the eye of an engraver. More than just a document, this print tells a complex story of power, memory, and the ever-changing face of urban space. The Temple of Hadrian, built in honor of a Roman emperor, existed for centuries as a sign of Roman imperial power. Vasi's depiction shows its partial integration into a new building; the physical structure of the temple becomes literally incorporated into the structures of a later era. What does it mean when the markers of one civilization become the foundations of another? Consider the figures populating the scene; they go about their daily lives against this backdrop of historical weight. Vasi invites us to consider the layers of history that shape our present. It’s a history embedded in stone, memory, and the lives of those who walk through it.