Fantasy of a Façade with Bizarre Ornaments
1765
chalk
From the collection of National Gallery of Art
1765
chalk
From the collection of National Gallery of Art
This drawing shows a crumbling building covered in wild carvings and fake ruins. The walls look heavy but full of odd shapes—like a giant doodle exploded. Piranesi loved drawing old Rome this way, mixing real and make-believe. The lines are super tight, done with a pen and ink trick called cross-hatching. That means lots of tiny lines layered to show dark shadows and depth. It takes forever to do, but it makes the scene feel real. Check out another Piranesi drawing next.
![Palatial Mantelpiece with Mercury and Hope [recto]](https://pub-3a17a9933ad74fb28aa30fa758592f23.r2.dev/artworks/35fcb50c5d0e2044/thumb.webp)
![Palatial Mantelpiece with a Scene of Ancient Sacrifice [recto]](https://pub-3a17a9933ad74fb28aa30fa758592f23.r2.dev/artworks/6818e7e0eb258b13/thumb.webp)
