Tomb on the Via Appia 

This is Herman van Swanevelt's etching, "Tomb on the Via Appia." Swanevelt, a Dutch artist working in the mid-17th century, captured the Roman countryside's ruins, blending classicism with the period's pastoral tastes. This image of the Via Appia, one of Rome's earliest roads, presents more than just a landscape; it's a layered narrative of power, memory, and the passage of time. The tomb, overgrown with vegetation, stands as a testament to a bygone era, juxtaposed with everyday life of the Italian working class of the time. Consider the figures along the road, dwarfed by the monument, hinting at the inequalities inherent in societies built upon the legacy of empires. Swanevelt invites us to reflect on how the past, often monumentalized, continues to shape the present and how it feels to literally walk in the shadows of previous eras.