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Original fileGezicht op de Tiber bij Tivoli
About This Work
The print depicts the rugged landscape of Tivoli, where the river cascades over a steep precipice into a narrow, rocky valley. Buildings and fortifications of the town are perched on the high cliffs to the left, while the foreground shows the turbulent path of the water as it winds through boulders. The composition emphasizes the overwhelming power of the natural elements compared to the small human structures and figures scattered throughout the scene.
Aegidius Sadeler was the primary engraver for Emperor Rudolf II in Prague, a court famous for its devotion to alchemy, natural philosophy, and the 'secrets of nature.' This landscape reflects the Rudolfine interest in the 'theatrum mundi' (theater of the world), where the study of dramatic geological formations was viewed as a way to understand the divine architecture of the Earth.
Inscriptions(Latin)
Cataratta ouero luocho stretto et precipitoso per la caduta del fiume Aniene hora Teuerrone, Il quale passando per mezo le selue scende poi gionto a Tivoli molto strabocchevolmente da gl'alti giuogi di quelle montagne nella soggetta valle oue per un pezzo parte nascondendosi parte trauagliandosi sotto o tra centi scogli allagando prima la pianura sgombra al fine le sue acque nello Teuere. Marco Sadeler excudit 40
Translation
Cataract or narrow and precipitous place due to the fall of the Aniene river, now Teverone, which, passing through the middle of the woods, then descends upon reaching Tivoli very precipitously from the high ridges of those mountains into the valley below, where for a stretch, partly hiding itself, partly struggling under or between a hundred rocks, it first floods the plain and finally discharges its waters into the Tiber. Marco Sadeler excudit 40
Connected Texts
Aegidius Sadeler
As the Imperial Engraver to Rudolf II, Sadeler's technical precision served the court's interest in documenting the wonders of the natural world.
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Provenance & Source
Object
Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam
paper
height 158 mm x width 271 mm
landscape
Linked Data
AI AI-cataloged fields generated by gemini-3-flash-preview on April 2, 2026. Getty identifiers are AI-inferred and may require verification.