Tomb of Cecilia Metella, 1762

Not on Viewexpand_more

This round ruin went from tomb to tollbooth. It still stands atop a hill along the Appian Way, about three miles south of the Colosseum. Originally over 70 feet tall and 96 feet wide, it had concrete walls 24 feet thick. As Piranesi noted on the tablet, it was built in the 1st century BCE to honor Caecilia Metella, “daughter of Roman consul Quintus Creticus and wife of Marcus Licinius Crassus.” The swallowtail-shaped battlements on top of the structure were added in the 1300s, when the tomb was converted into a fortress. The owners then used it to collect exorbitant tolls from travelers passing by on the Appian Way.

Details
Title
Tomb of Cecilia Metella
Artist Life
Italian, 1720–1778
Role
Artist
Accession Number
P.477
Catalogue Raisonne
Hind 067; Wilton-Ely
Curator Approved

This record has been reviewed by our curatorial staff but may be incomplete. These records are frequently revised and enhanced. If you notice a mistake or have additional information about this object, please email collectionsdata@artsmia.org.

Does something look wrong with this image? Let us know

Zoom in on the left to the detail you'd like to save. Click 'Save detail' and wait until the image updates. Right click the image to 'save image as' or copy link, or click the image to open in a new tab.