Temple of Minerva Medica, Rome

The so-called Temple of Minerva Medica was one of the most famous and frequently reproduced monuments in eighteenth-century Rome. Situated close to the Porta Maggiore on agricultural land within the ancient Aurelian walls, the decagonal, domed structure was identified during the eighteenth century as a temple dedicated to Minerva the Doctor (it is more likely to have been a nymphaeum). Wilson’s sheet emphasizes the dome of the structure, which collapsed in 1828, with the facade and campanile of the church of Santa Bibiana beyond.