Boog van Septimius Severus te Rome - Anna Beeck

A detailed seventeenth-century hand-coloured etching of the Arch of Septimius Severus in Rome, capturing the classical ruins with precision.

This hand-coloured etching depicts the Arch of Septimius Severus in the Roman Forum, accompanied by the Capitoline Hill in the background. Anna Beeck, a Dutch engraver active in the late seventeenth century, produced this work as part of a series documenting classical ruins. The composition is based on the earlier work of Israel Silvestre, whose name appears in the lower margin, reflecting the common practice of printmakers adapting existing topographical studies for wider distribution.

The print captures the triumphal arch in a state of partial excavation, characteristic of the period before modern archaeological efforts fully cleared the site. The architectural details of the arch, including its triple-bay structure and the remnants of its decorative friezes, are rendered with precise, thin lines. The hand-applied colour palette remains restrained, using soft washes of ochre, pale blue, and muted red to define the stone structures and the sky. Small figures are placed in the foreground to provide a sense of scale, a standard convention in seventeenth-century topographical art.

Beeck's work provides a glimpse into how European audiences of the late seventeenth century perceived the classical past. The inclusion of bilingual titles in Italian and French suggests the print was intended for an international market of travellers and scholars interested in the Grand Tour. The framing of the image, with its decorative border, indicates its likely origin as a plate from a bound volume or a collector's album. This piece offers a clear view of the Roman Forum as it appeared during the early modern era, balancing technical accuracy with the aesthetic sensibilities of the Dutch printmaking tradition.