imported>Doomhope: removed Category:Oil paintings; added Category:Oil on panel paintings using HotCat

2025-06-28T09:10:44Z

removed Category:Oil paintings; added Category:Oil on panel paintings using HotCat

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{{short description|Painting by Raphael}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2023}}
{{Infobox artwork
| image=Portrait of a Cardinal, by Raffael, from Prado in Google Earth.jpg
| title=Portrait of a Cardinal
| artist=[[Raphael]]
| year={{circa|1510–1511}}
| medium=[[Panel painting|Oil on wood]]
| height_metric=79
| width_metric=61
| metric_unit=cm
| imperial_unit=in
| city=[[Madrid]]
| museum=[[Museo del Prado]]
}}

'''''Portrait of a Cardinal''''', or simply '''''The Cardinal''''', is an oil on panel painting by the [[Italian Renaissance]] artist [[Raphael]], dated to {{circa|1510–1511}}. It is held by the [[Prado Museum]] in Madrid.

Raphael had arrived in Rome in 1508, and quickly found great success during the papacy of [[Pope Julius II]]. He mastered the art of [[Realism (arts)|realism]] in his paintings: the ability to "paint people as more real than they really are", as [[Pietro Bembo]] put it.

The three-quarter length portrait depicts a young [[Cardinal (Catholic Church)|cardinal]], probably in his thirties, seated, wearing a red cape and cap with white shirt, against a dark background, looking calmly towards the viewer. [[Pentimenti]] show that Raphael shortened the hair, and moved the left eye. The identify of the subject has been a matter of considerable debate, with proposed candidates in the court of [[Pope Julius II]] including [[Bernardo Dovizi]] (known as Bibbiena), [[Innocenzo Cybo]], [[Scaramuccia Trivulzio]], [[Pope Paul III|Alessandro Farnese]], [[Ippolito d'Este]], [[Silvio Passerini]], [[Antonio Maria Ciocchi del Monte|Antonio Ciocchi]], [[Matthäus Schiner]] or [[Luigi d'Aragona]].

According to the Prado, it is perhaps most likely to be [[Francesco Alidosi]] (1455–1511), also depicted by Raphael in his 1509–1510 work the ''[[Disputation of the Holy Sacrament]]'', or possibly [[Bendinello Sauli]] ({{circa|1481–1518}}).

The seated subject's upright body and horizontal left arm, resting on an unseen arm of a chair, create a triangular composition, after [[Leonardo da Vinci]]'s ''[[Mona Lisa]]''. The strong lighting makes striking contrasts between the red of the cardinal's hat and cape, the whiteness of his sleeve and face, and the dark background. Meticulous brushstrokes give the audience a three-dimensional character, revealing Rapahel's interest in sculpture during those years.{{sfn|museodelprado|2022}}

The painting was bought in Rome by [[Charles IV of Spain]] (1748–1819), while he was still the [[Prince of Asturias]]. Due to its technique, which was considered unusual for Raphael, the picture was attributed to [[Antonio Moro]] for some time before the attribution was reassessed. The work entered the [[Spanish royal collection]], and was catalogued at the [[Royal Palace of Aranjuez]] in 1818; it was later transferred to the Prado.

==See also==
*[[List of paintings by Raphael]]

==Notes==
{{reflist}}

==References==
*{{cite web |url= https://www.museodelprado.es/en/the-collection/art-work/the-cardinal/4c01eae6-feed-4135-88d9-6736140212fb |title=The Cardinal, Raphael |location=Prado |last=museodelprado |year=2022}}

==External links==
*{{commons category-inline}}

{{Raphael}}
{{Museo del Prado}}

[[Category:16th-century portraits|Cardinal]]
[[Category:1510 paintings]]
[[Category:Portraits by Raphael|Cardinal]]
[[Category:Paintings by Raphael in the Museo del Prado]]
[[Category:Works about religious leaders]]
[[Category:Oil on panel paintings]]
[[Category:Portraits of men]]

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Portrait of a Cardinal (Raphael) - Revision history

imported>Doomhope: removed Category:Oil paintings; added Category:Oil on panel paintings using HotCat