Plan of the Cortile Belvedere
1565
ink
From the collection of National Gallery of Art
1565
ink
From the collection of National Gallery of Art
This etching shows a bird’s-eye plan of the Vatican’s Cortile Belvedere. Straight lines divide the space into neat rectangles. Staircases zigzag between levels. The print is small—about the size of a sheet of paper. It was made in 1565 by an Italian artist named Antonio Lafreri. He copied Donato Bramante’s design for Pope Julius II. The plan helped builders follow the layout exactly. Look up the National Gallery of Art, Washington, to see this plan in person.
![Ichnographia Templi Divi Petri [Plan of Saint Peter's Basilica in Rome]](https://pub-3a17a9933ad74fb28aa30fa758592f23.r2.dev/artworks/f1844fd1b6664111/thumb.webp)
![Pantheum Romanum [The Roman Pantheon]](https://pub-3a17a9933ad74fb28aa30fa758592f23.r2.dev/artworks/8069db7dd8e6f190/thumb.webp)
