De Tempj di Giano della Porta Januale confusa dal Nardini col tempio di questo nume e del Tempio di Giano nel Foro Transitorio etc.
4to. [24 x 17 cm], 22 pp., (1 f.), 1 folding engraved plate with 2 figures (25.5 x 17 cm). Modern quarter calf, spine with red leather label and gilt bands, buckram boards. Mild foxing to title page, final page, and plate. Overall very good.
Rare first edition of this study which attempts to identify and distinguish various Roman temples to the two-faced god, by the archaeologist and painter Piale (1753-1835). Relying largely on literary sources (Martial, Ovid, Macrobius and Procopius), the work is of interest for both the state of archaeology at the beginning of the 19th century and the condition of the structures discussed. Piale also discusses the Roman custom of closing the doors to the Temple of Janus when Rome was at peace—a rare occurrence!
A minor painter, Piale produced a considerable number of illustrated dissertations on specific Roman aedifices that usually originated as lectures delivered to the Pontificia Accademia di Archeologia. His best-known work is devoted to the topography of Rome.
The plates show two structures: the Temple of Janus in the Forum and another on the Via Nova, thought by Piale to have been built by Septimius Severus.
OCLC lists Harvard.
* CLIO vol. 5, p. 3585; Porter, Medieval Architecture: Its Origins and Development, p. 392.
Price: $450.00