Raphael (1483-1520) has been regarded as the supreme High Renaissance artist for centuries. His limited career lasted only two decades, but no artist before or since has had a greater impact on Western civilization.
Raphael, a painter, draughtsman, architect, and archaeologist, had a remarkable ability to recreate himself. He received contracts for altarpieces and devotional images while still in his teens, and he worked as an independent master throughout central Italy in the years that followed. In 1508, at the age of 25, he was summoned to Pope Julius II's court to assist in the redecoration of the papal palaces.
He spent the rest of his life in Rome, where he rose to become one of the finest history painters of all time, and was appointed architect in charge of St Peter's Basilica in 1514.

This beautifully illustrated book provides a thorough view of Raphael's accomplishments, tracing his career's progression in all its depth and complexity. Leading academics write about his paintings and sketches, his frescoes in the Vatican Stanze, his designs for tapestries, sculptures, and prints, and his interaction with architecture. Many of Raphael's finest paintings are examined in detail and in reliable catalogue listings.