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About This Work
The engraving shows the island in the middle of the Tiber River, historically modified by the Romans to resemble a stone galley. The scene identifies the Ponte Fabricio and Ponte Cestio, as well as the church of San Bartolomeo, which stands on the site of the ancient Temple of Aesculapius. Lettered keys throughout the image correspond to the inscription's description of the ship's prow, stern, and surrounding architecture.
Tiber Island is historically synonymous with the Temple of Aesculapius, the Greek god of healing, making it a site of immense importance in the history of medicine and natural philosophy. As an engraver at the court of Rudolf II in Prague, Aegidius Sadeler's documentation of Roman ruins served the era's intense interest in classical antiquity and the Hermetic roots of Western wisdom.
Inscriptions(Italian)
Vestigij della Isola di Sto Bartholomeo, gia Anticamente detta l'isola di Gione licaonio, o uer di Esculapio, per hauerci quelli dei i loro Tempij fu fatta detta Isola in forma d'una naue o galera come se ne uedeno ancho oggidi vestigij quali si mostrano per l'infrascritti segni. A. era la platea doue era sopra fabricata detta naue. B. la parte de la poppa di essa. C. il ponte Fabritio hoggi detto de quattro cappi. D. il ponte Cestio hora il chiamano di Sto Bartholomeo per esser la chiesa di questo santo posta In detta Isola Marco Sadeler excudit. 37
Translation
Vestiges of the Island of St. Bartholomew, formerly called in ancient times the island of Lycaonian Juno, or rather of Aesculapius, because those gods had their temples there; said island was made in the form of a ship or galley, as vestiges of which can be seen even today, which are shown by the signs written below. A. was the area where said ship was built upon. B. the stern part of it. C. the Fabricius bridge, today called the bridge of the four heads. D. the Cestius bridge, now called the bridge of St. Bartholomew, because the church of this saint is situated on said island. Marco Sadeler excudit. 37
Connected Texts
Asclepius
The island was the site of the Temple of Aesculapius, the eponymous figure of one of the most important dialogues in the Hermetic tradition.
Rudolf II
The artist served as the imperial engraver for Rudolf II, whose court was the center of late Renaissance Hermeticism and alchemy.
Collections
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.