Fontana di Belvedere á Frascati (...), from 'La Fontane di Roma nelle Piazze e Luoghi Publici (...)', part 2, 'Le fontane delle ville di Frascati' (plate 5)

Publisher Giovanni Giacomo De Rossi Italian

1691 or after

Not on view

The Villa Aldobrandini belonged to the grandest of Roman Baroque estates, enjoying from its perfect position, high above a set of oval terraces built inside the slope of the Tusculum Hill, a wide view of Frascati and the countryside toward Rome. Begun for Ippolito Aldobrandini (Pope Clement VII) in 1598 and extended by his nephew, Cardinal Pietro Aldobrandini, the villa and gardens, with their astonishing water displays, were created by a team of well-known architects, including Giacomo della Porta, Carlo Maderno, and Domenico Fontana. Of all the magnificent fountains that once graced the gardens, two delightfully sculpted barchetta fountains in the form of a small boat, one of which is illustrated in this print, survive today. They stand on either end of the retaining wall of the oval ramp that embraces the front of the villa complex. The fountains are decorated with playful figures of putti spewing water jets from a central rock and from sconces on either side. The element of water informs the whole Aldobrandini estate, from the semicircular water theater directly behind the house to the dramatic cascade from the steep hill above.
See 1991.1073.145(34-51) for more information.

Artwork Details

Title: Fontana di Belvedere á Frascati (...), from 'La Fontane di Roma nelle Piazze e Luoghi Publici (...)', part 2, 'Le fontane delle ville di Frascati' (plate 5)
Artist: Giovanni Battista Falda (Italian, Valduggia 1643–1678 Rome)
Publisher: Giovanni Giacomo De Rossi (Italian, Rome 1627–1691 Rome)
Date: 1691 or after
Medium: Etching
Dimensions: Plate: 8 3/8 × 11 5/16 in. (21.2 × 28.7 cm)
Classifications: Prints, Ornament & Architecture
Credit Line: Gift of D. W. Langton, transferred from the Library
Object Number: 1991.1073.145(2.5)
Curatorial Department: Drawings and Prints

More Artwork

By Giovanni Battista Falda

By Giovanni Giacomo De Rossi

In the same medium

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La Fontane di Roma nelle Piazze e Luoghi Publici della Città (...), part 1, Giovanni Battista Falda Italian, Etching — La Fontane di Roma nelle Piazze e Luoghi Publici della Città (...), part 1
Giovanni Battista Falda
Giovanni Giacomo De Rossi
1691 or after

View of the Villa Medici, Giovanni Battista Falda Italian, Etching — View of the Villa Medici
Giovanni Battista Falda
Giovanni Giacomo De Rossi
after 1677

Le Fontane delle Ville di Frascati nel Tusculano con li Loro Prospetti, Giovanni Battista Falda Italian, Etching — Le Fontane delle Ville di Frascati nel Tusculano con li Loro Prospetti
Giovanni Battista Falda
Giovanni Giacomo De Rossi
1691 or after

Le Fontane ne' Palazzi e ne' Giardini di Roma con li Loro Prospetti et Ornamenti, Giovanni Battista Falda Italian, Etching — Le Fontane ne' Palazzi e ne' Giardini di Roma con li Loro Prospetti et Ornamenti
Multiple artists/makers
1691 or after

Fontana del Sig. Prencipe di Pallestrina (...). From 'La Fontane di Roma nelle Piazze e Luoghi Publici (...)'., Giovanni Battista Falda Italian, Etching — Fontana del Sig. Prencipe di Pallestrina (...). From 'La Fontane di Roma nelle Piazze e Luoghi Publici (...)'.
Giovanni Battista Falda
Giovanni Giacomo De Rossi
1691 or after

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