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Original fileVestigi della antichita di Roma, Tivoli, Pozzuolo et altri Luochi
About This Work
A large stone block inscribed with a lengthy Italian dedication is flanked by remnants of antiquity, including an obelisk covered in pseudo-hieroglyphs and various classical urns. Two putti sit atop the central block, supporting an ornate coat of arms amidst architectural ruins and a globe. The scene serves as an ornamental introduction to Sadeler's influential collection of views depicting the 'vestiges' of Rome and its surroundings.
This work was produced by Aegidius Sadeler, the court engraver to Emperor Rudolf II in Prague, a center for late Renaissance hermeticism and natural philosophy. The dedication to Wackher von Wackhenfels—a prominent counselor to Rudolf II and patron of Johannes Kepler—highlights the intersection of archaeology, the search for 'prisca sapientia' (ancient wisdom), and the intellectual culture of the Rudolfine court.
Inscriptions(Latin)
ALL' ILLVSTRISSIMO ET ECCELLENTISSIMO SIGNOR MIO ET PATRON OSSERVANDISSIMO IL SIGNOR MATTEO VVACKHERO DA VVACKHENFELS CONSIGLIERO AVLICO DI SVA MAE. CAES. ETC. SE LE OPERE POTESSERO CON QVELLA VELOCITÀ GIVNGERE DOVE ARRIVA IL DESIDERIO, NON SAREBBE QVESTO IL PRIMO FRVTTO DELL' ARTE MIA, QVAL DEL CHIARO NOME DI V. S. ILL.ma INSCRITTO PALESASSE ALMANCO IN PARTE, POI CHE SOTTO VN CALIGINOSO MANTO DI QVESTA SPESSA ET OSCVRA NVBE DI FVMO, CON LA QVALE L'INVIDO TEMPO HA PROCVRATO DI VELARE, ANZI PER L'EFICACIA DELLA RVGGINE SVA, DI CONSVMARE AFFATTO L' ANTICHITÀ (DAL CVI GRAN NAVFRAGIO QVESTE POCHE TAVOLE QVI RAPPRESENTO) LE SCHIOPPIANTI SCINTILLE DELLA VIVA FIAMMA D'ESSO. FIAMMA, ALLA CVI LVCE E CALORE, SE BENE SENZA EFFETTO SIN' HORA, TVTTAVIA CON DIVOTO AFFETTO, STETTI INTRINSECAMENTE À GODERE, PER VIA DI SERVITV, CHE DA PRINCIPIO CH' I LA CONOBBI À GENEROSI E PERCIÒ HVMANISSIMI COSTVMI SVOI NE GIVRAI, QVANTO LA DEBOLEZZA MIA PERMESSE, I DIVINI RAGGI DELL' ECCELLENTE PARTI, E RARE VIRTÙ SVE. MA E BENE CHE DOPPO TAL DILATIONE HO DATTO IN SOGGETTO, QVANTVNQVE NELLO PARAGONARE DISVGVALE ALLA QVALITÀ E SPLENDORE DELL' OGGETTO, AL QVALE ESSO S'INDRIZZA; NELLA MATERIA NONDIMENO ET OGGETTO, QVAL SI HA PREFISSO PER L' FINE, COME SPERO, NON IN TVTTO ALIENO DAL GVSTO ANZI STVDIO DI V. S. ILL.ma QVALE, IO HO SCELTA TRA TANTI, PER VNICO SOGGETTO, MEDIANTE CVI INDEFESSA PRONTEZZA D' INGEGNO, OGNI SORTE DI COGNITIONE, DI QVESTA STESSA ANTICHITÀ, COME RADICE TROVA PROGRESSO SENTE, COSÌ ANCO COLMO DI PERFETTIONE SPERAR POSSI. PREGO V. S. ILLVSTRISS.ma I MIEI DIFFETTI DI SVA GRATIA ADEMPIA; CH' IO AVGVRANDOLE OGNI BENE LE BACCIO RIVERENTEMENTE LA MANO. Aegidio Sadeler Marco Sadeler excudit.
Translation
TO THE MOST ILLUSTRIOUS AND MOST EXCELLENT LORD, MY MOST RESPECTED PATRON, LORD MATTHÄUS WACKHER VON WACKENFELS, AULIC COUNSELOR TO HIS CAESAREAN MAJESTY, ETC. IF WORKS COULD ARRIVE WITH THE SAME SPEED THAT DESIRE ATTAINS, THIS WOULD NOT BE THE FIRST FRUIT OF MY ART, WHICH, INSCRIBED WITH THE ILLUSTRIOUS NAME OF YOUR EXCELLENCY, MIGHT REVEAL AT LEAST IN PART—SINCE BENEATH A GLOOMY MANTLE OF THIS THICK AND OBSCURE CLOUD OF SMOKE, WITH WHICH ENVIOUS TIME HAS TRIED TO VEIL, OR RATHER, THROUGH THE EFFICACY OF ITS RUST, TO CONSUME ENTIRELY ANTIQUITY (FROM WHOSE GREAT SHIPWRECK I REPRESENT THESE FEW PLATES HERE)— THE CRACKLING SPARKS OF ITS VIVID FLAME. A FLAME, IN WHOSE LIGHT AND HEAT, ALTHOUGH WITHOUT EFFECT UNTIL NOW, I HAVE NEVERTHELESS REMAINED INTRINSICALLY ENJOYING WITH DEVOTED AFFECTION, BY WAY OF SERVICE, WHICH FROM THE BEGINNING THAT I KNEW OF HIS GENEROUS AND THEREFORE MOST HUMANE CUSTOMS, I SWORE, AS MUCH AS MY WEAKNESS PERMITTED, TO THE DIVINE RAYS OF HIS EXCELLENT PARTS AND RARE VIRTUES. BUT IT IS WELL THAT AFTER SUCH DELAY I HAVE GIVEN A SUBJECT, HOWEVER UNEQUAL IN COMPARISON TO THE QUALITY AND SPLENDOR OF THE OBJECT TO WHICH IT IS DIRECTED; YET IN THE MATTER AND OBJECT, WHICH IT HAS PRESCRIBED AS ITS END, AS I HOPE, NOT ENTIRELY ALIEN TO THE TASTE OR RATHER STUDY OF YOUR EXCELLENCY, WHOM I HAVE CHOSEN AMONG MANY AS THE UNIQUE SUBJECT, BY MEANS OF WHOSE INDEFATIGABLE QUICKNESS OF WIT, EVERY SORT OF KNOWLEDGE OF THIS VERY ANTIQUITY, AS A ROOT FINDS PROGRESS AND FEELS IT, SO ALSO MAY BE HOPED TO BE FULL OF PERFECTION. I BEG YOUR EXCELLENCY TO FULFILL MY DEFECTS WITH YOUR GRACE; WISHING YOU EVERY GOOD THING, I REVERENTLY KISS YOUR HAND. Aegidius Sadeler Marco Sadeler excudit.
Connected Texts
Johannes Matthäus Wackher von Wackhenfels
The dedicatee of this work was a key figure in the Rudolfine circle, known for his interest in Neoplatonism and his patronage of scientific and esoteric scholars.
Horapollo
The inclusion of symbolic hieroglyphs on the obelisk reflects the Renaissance obsession with the 'Hieroglyphica' and the belief that Egyptian script encoded divine secrets.
Provenance & Source
Object
Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam
paper
height 155 mm x width 264 mm
architectural
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.