Girandola at Castel Sant’Angelo, Francesco Piranesi, after Louis Jean Desprez, c. 1781 - c. 1785

Girandola at Castel Sant’Angelo, Francesco Piranesi, after Louis Jean Desprez, c. 1781 - c. 1785

etching, h 770mm × w 513mm More details

The was the firework display lit from the Castel Sant’Angelo in Rome during Easter festivities. It lasted a full hour, reaching a climax at nine o’clock in the evening, with a fan-shaped shower of stars as the grand finale – the very moment Desprez depicted here. He lit up the structure, reflected in the River Tiber, with coloured printing ink.