Head of a muse [from 'The Parnassus']

A print reproducing the head and shoulders of the third standing muse to the left of Apollo in the fresco of the Parnassus, painted by Raphael in c.1510-11 in the Stanza della Segnatura, Vatican. The figure is surrounded by a fictive frame. Proof lacking identification of the figure and provenance of the work. Lettered with production details. Stamped with the publisher's blind stamp (Lugt 4210). In the final state of the engraving, the figure is described as Melpomene, the muse of tragedy. This identification is still regarded as the most plausible.