Lot Essay
Wilkens was in Rome in 1710-7. The fountain of the Acqua Acetosa was located about a mile upstream from the Ponte Milvio. Its somewhat acid-tasting but salubrious water and the natural beauty of the surrounding countryside made it a popular haunt for both Romans and artists. Paul V commissioned Vasanzio to construct a fountain in 1631, which was replaced by the present fountain in 1660-2, designed by Andrea Sacchi and commissioned by Alexander VII. The votive chapel on the hill was depicted in views by several other artists including Claude, Bartholomeus Breenbergh and Richard Wilson. A comparable view first attributed to Wilkens by An Zwollo is in the Thomas Ashby Collection in the Vatican Library, Rome, R. Keaveney, Views of Rome, London, 1988, pp. 230-1, no. 62, illustrated.