View of the Cloaca Maxima, Rome

The work titled View of the Cloaca Maxima, Rome was painted by Christoffer Wilhelm Eckersberg in 1814, as recorded in the artist’s own dated entry and confirmed by the National Gallery of Art’s catalogue (inception 1814‑01‑01). Executed in oil on canvas, the piece entered the artist’s estate following his death in 1853 and was sold at an estate auction in Copenhagen in 1854 (lot 21). The painting then passed to Count F. R. Scheel of Ryegaard, later appearing in a Bruun Rasmussen auction on 6 October 1998 (lot 2001) before entering a private collection. The National Gallery of Art acquired the work on 10 September 2004.

The painting View of the Cloaca Maxima, Rome (1814) by Christoffer Wilhelm Eckersberg is part of the National Gallery of Art’s collection in Washington, D.C., having entered the museum on 10 September 2004 after being sold at Bruun Rasmussen in Copenhagen. Its current accession is recorded within the NGA’s holdings, though a specific inventory number is not published in the available records. The work was included in the exhibition titled “A beautiful lie – Eckersberg,” which highlighted the artist’s architectural subjects.

Christoffer Wilhelm Eckersberg, often recognized as the "Father of Danish painting," executed View of the Cloaca Maxima, Rome in 1814. This oil on canvas work presents a detailed cityscape, focusing on a segment of the ancient Roman sewer system. It captures a specific moment and location during the artist's travels, reflecting his meticulous approach to depicting architectural and historical subjects.

Eckersberg created this work during his formative travels in Rome, a common pilgrimage for artists of his era. Such journeys to Italy were essential for studying classical antiquity and mastering landscape and architectural painting. His meticulous rendering of the Cloaca Maxima exemplifies this tradition, combining historical interest with a direct, observational approach to the Roman environment.