The Raphael Cartoons

Now on display at the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, the Raphael Cartoons are widely considered one of the glories of the Italian Renaissance. Made as full-scale design drawings for tapestries, their survival is remarkable given their original purpose and inherent fragility. This beautiful and compelling book presents a new consideration of Raphael's achievement, shedding fresh light on the Cartoons' history from their creation, their acquisition by the English Crown in 1623, to their loan to the South Kensington Museum by Queen Victoria in 1865 in memory of Prince Albert. Illustrated with entirely new digital photography, made to mark the 500th anniversary of the artist's death, the book focuses on Raphael's artistic practice and his legacy. The Cartoons were carefully designed to be reproduced, and they are shown here as never before.