Italy.- Smith (Circle of John Warwick, 1749-1831) Interior of the Colosseum: looking towards the great wall on the north side, seen from the east, pen and brown ink, watercolour, traces of pencil, on thick Italian laid paper with watermark of a fleur-de-lis within two concentric circles, indistinct pencil signature verso 'Rev. H... P...', and further inscription 'Piranesi G.B. fecit', sheet 540 x 380 mm. (21 1/4 x 15 in), central horizontal fold, minor surface dirt and handling creases, unframed, [probably circa 1770-1780s].

⁂ The Colosseum with its interior arcades and grand architectural features was a popular subject for visiting English artists of the 1770s and 1780s. Like the work of the Italian printmaker Giovanni Battista Piranesi, these men sought to illustrate the grandeur of the ruins of ancient Rome.