The Raphael Cartoons
The Raphael Cartoons were commissioned from the great Italian Renaissance painter Raphael Sanzio (1483-1520) in 1515 by Pope Leo X (reigned 1513-21). They were planned as f…
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Room 48a: The Raphael Cartoons
This room houses the surviving designs painted by Raphael, one of the greatest of all Italian Renaissance artists, for tapestries commissioned in Rome in 1515 by Pope Leo X…
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The Raphael Cartoons: What is a cartoon?
Cartoons were used in the creation of frescoes, other large-scale wall paintings and, in this case, tapestries. Before beginning a cartoon, Raphael and his assistants would…
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The Raphael Cartoons: history of the cartoons
Leo X commissioned a set of tapestry designs, or cartoons, from Raphael in 1515. The ten cartoons depicted episodes from the lives of Saints Peter and Paul.
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The Raphael Cartoons: the decoration of the Sistine Chapel
Sixtus began the decoration of the chapel in 1481-82, hiring a team of the most prestigious artists of the time, including Botticelli, Signorelli, Ghirlandaio, Cosimo Rosse…
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The Raphael Cartoons: Raphael & Pope Leo X
The biographies of Raphael (Raffaello Santi or Sanzio) & Pope Leo X
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The Raphael Cartoons: Animal imagery
Animal imagery in the Miraculous Draught of Fishes
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The examination & conservation of the Raphael cartoons
An important aspect of the refurbishment of the Raphael Gallery in the 1990s was the opportunity it provided for close examination of the cartoons.
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The Raphael Cartoons: A Tale of Two Raphaels
In this special film, Dr Mark Evans visits the V&A and Windsor Castle to reveal how Raphael made the cartoons which were used to make tapestries by specialist weavers in Br…
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The Raphael Cartoons: Waldemar Januszczak on Raphael
Raphael's famous tapestries were hung in the Sistine Chapel in July 2010. Waldemar Januszczak explains why he made a special trip to Rome to see them.
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A gift in your will
You may not have thought of including a gift to a museum in your will, but the V&A is a charity and legacies form an important source of funding for our work. It is not just the great collectors and the wealthy who leave legacies to the V&A. Legacies of all sizes, large and small, make a real difference to what we can do and your support can help ensure that future generations enjoy the V&A as much as you have.
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Raphael: Cartoons and Tapestries for the Sistine Chapel
In September 2010, the V&A will show four of the ten tapestries Raphael designed for the Sistine Chapel in Vatican City. These remarkable works ar…
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