Other Frescoes
Other Frescoes
A group of four soldiers
dated 1 May 1818Facsimile engraving | 27.3 x 28.6 cm (sheet of paper) | RCIN 853759
The decoration of the Piccolomini library was commissioned by Cardinal Francesco Todeschino Piccolomini (later Pope Pius III) in 1502 from Raphael's older Perugian contemporary Pinturicchio. The frescoes illustrate events in the life of Pope Pius II (Enea Silvio Piccolomini), the Cardinal's uncle. Vasari credited Raphael with executing 'some drawings and some cartoons' for the library at the express request of Pinturicchio. Scholarly opinion has been divided over the attribution of preparatory drawings for the frescoes, but at least five drawings convincingly related to the decorative scheme are considered to be by Raphael (see Bibliographic References). For a photograph of the drawing which this print reproduces, see RCIN 853758.
Creator(s)
George Robert Lewis (1782-1871) (printmaker)
After Raphael (Urbino 1483-Rome 1520) (designer)
William Young Ottley (1771-1836) (publisher)
Top Left
27.3 x 28.6 cm (sheet of paper)
Study for part of one of the Frescoes painted by PINTURICCHIO in the Library of the Duomo at Siena.
- Added to the Prince Consort's Raphael Collection (c.1853-76)
Bibliographic reference(s)
pp.23-26 (Chapman/Plazzotta/Henry 2004 : Chapman, H, Plazzotta, C, Henry, T. Raphael. From Urbino to Rome. London, 2004)
nos 56-61 (Joannides 1983 : Joannides, P., 1983. The Drawings of Raphael, with a complete catalogue, Oxford)