May 11, 2023 - Sale 2636

Sale 2636 - Lot 178

Price Realized: $ 8,438
?Final Price Realized includes Buyer’s Premium added to Hammer Price
Estimate: $ 8,000 - $ 12,000
GIOVANNI B. PIRANESI
The Grand Piazza.

Etching, engraving and drypoint, 1749-50. 553x417 mm; 22x16 1/2 inches, full margins. First state (of 6); Robison's first edition, third issue with the ink dabbing on the upper right half of the foreground wall along the right edge of the image, before the artist's signature in the plate, an early proof impression (which dates from 1749-60). Fleur-de-lys in a single circle watermark (probably Robison 5, which he dates from the mid-1700s). From Carceri d'Invenzione. A superb, early impression with strong contrasts and no sign of wear. Robison 31.