This etching of Villa Albani’s semicircular portico is based on a drawing by Francesco Pannini, son of the celebrated artist Giovanni Paolo Pannini. Villa Albani was designed by architect Francesco Cavallini and constructed between 1749 and 1763 for the noble Albani family. Renowned for its Neoclassical architecture and expansive gardens, the villa was a centre of cultural activity during the eighteenth century. Its impressive collection of Classical sculptures, Renaissance paintings and Roman antiquities made it a popular destination for visitors to Rome, in particular the wealthy young Englishmen who travelled the Continent on the Grand Tour.