From the artist's life
Raphael died on his 37th birthday, reportedly after a fever; all Rome mourned, and he was buried with honours in the Pantheon.
Source: Wikipedia / WikimediaRenaissance
Raphael
Raphael (1483–1520) was the youngest of the three giants of the High Renaissance, prized for serene harmony, perfect composition and grace. His School of Athens is the visual summit of Renaissance humanism.
For four centuries Raphael was the model of academic perfection; his Madonnas defined the very idea of ideal beauty.
- Painted the Vatican Stanze, including the School of Athens, for Pope Julius II.
- His tender Madonnas became the Western template for ideal, gentle beauty.
- Ran one of the largest, most efficient workshops of the Renaissance before dying at just 37.
Key works
Where to start
Complete list of key works
Works with a dedicated ArtAtlas page are highlighted in gold.
- The Marriage of the VirginOn ArtAtlas
- The School of AthensOn ArtAtlas
- Sistine MadonnaListed for reference
- Raphael RoomsListed for reference
- La fornarinaListed for reference
- Madonna of the GoldfinchListed for reference
- Madonna del GranducaListed for reference
- TransfigurationListed for reference
- Madonna del PratoListed for reference
- The DepositionListed for reference
- Portrait of Baldassare CastiglioneListed for reference
- Resurrection of ChristListed for reference
1504
The Marriage of the Virgin
Raphael painted this at 21 years old — it was a commissioned altarpiece for the Albizzini family chapel in Città di Castello, and he signed and dated it directly on the temple in the background, which was almost unheard of for an artist that young.
1512
The School of Athens
The School of Athens is a fresco by the Italian Renaissance artist Raphael. It was painted between 1509 and 1511 as part of a commission by Pope Julius II to decorate the rooms now called the Stanze di Raffaello in the Apostolic Palace in Vatican City.