Giambattista Nolli (1701-1756) was an architect and surveyor who lived in Rome and devoted his life to documenting the architectural and urban foundations of the city. In 1748, he drew one of the most detailed and accurate maps ever created for the city of Rome. Improving on the Buffalini Plan of 1551, Nolli’s plan was drawn to an incredible precision.
The Nolli map is an ichnographic plan map of the city, as opposed to a bird’s eye perspective, which was the dominant cartographic representation style prevalent before his work. Not only was Nolli one of the first people to construct an ichnographic map of Rome, his unique perspective has been copied ever since.
The map depicts the city in astonishing detail. Nolli accomplished this by using scientific surveying techniques, careful base drawings, and minutely prepared engravings. The map’s graphic representations include a precise architectural scale, as well as a prominent compass rose, which notes both magnetic and astronomical north. The Nolli map is the first accurate map of Rome since antiquity and captures the city at the height of its cultural and artistic achievements. The historic center of Rome has changed little over the last 250 years; therefore, the Nolli map remains one of the best sources for understanding the contemporary city.
Interested in comparing Rome of the 18th century to the Rome that you know and love today? You can do so by visiting University of Oregon’s Interactive Nolli Map. The website features a digitally mastered, high resolution interactive Nolli map, designed for broadband connections. The Map Engine allows you to navigate through the city at a variety of scales, to pan in any direction and to zoom in or out from the macro-scale of the city to the micro-scale of the building. As well, layers have been created to showcase particular urban features like gardens and fountains.
The website was developed by:
Jim Tice, University of Oregon Dept of Architecture
Erik Steiner, InfoGraphics Lab, Dept of Geography
Consulting: Allan Ceen PhD., Pennsylvania State University/Studium Urbis
Graduate Students: Mark Brenneman, Ben Humphrey, & Eric Sproles
