Landscape Capriccio with Tomb of the Horatii and Curiatii, and the Villa of Maecenas at Tivoli

Wilson stayed in Italy during the 1750s and was strongly influenced by Claude Lorraine and Gaspard Dughet. The foreground shows the tombs of the Horatii, three brothers who are heroes in Roman history, in Via Appia Nuova. Opposite them is a female statue probably based on a statue in the Villa Medici. Portrayed in the middle ground is the villa of Maecenas, recalling the glory of ancient Rome. The melancholic tone in this painting implies the yearning for ancient culture by the British aristocracy of the time, who were keen to be a scion of such civilization. (Source: The Digital Gallery. 1999-2006)