Saint James Major, book is his right hand, staff in his left facing right, from "Piccoli Santi" (Small Saints)
Medium
Engraving
Dimensions
3 1/8 x 1 7/8 in. (8.0 x 4.8 cm)
Classification
Prints
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
The Elisha Whittelsey Collection, The Elisha Whittelsey Fund, 1949
Accession Number
49.97.40
Tags
Art Historical Context
Behold *Saint James Major* from the "Piccoli" (Small Saints), a delicate engraving by Marcantonio Raimondi after a design by the Renaissance master Raphael (Rello Sanzio da Urbino). Dated around 1500–1527, this intimate print measures just 3 1/8 x 1 7/8 inches, capturing the facing right, book in his right hand and pilgrim's staff in his left—a classic attribute symbolizing his journeys and martyrdom. Raimondi, a pioneering engraver of the High Renaissance, masterfully reproduced Raphael's compositions, making the artist's grand visions accessible through affordable prints. This work exemplif...
About the Artist
Marcantonio Raimondi|Raphael (Raffaello Sanzio or Santi) · 1475–1534
Marcantonio Raimondi (c. 1480–1534), born near Bologna, Italy, emerged as one of the Renaissance's premier engravers, revolutionizing printmaking through his mastery of reproductive techniques. He trained in the workshop of the goldsmith, painter, and niellist Francesco Francia, whose influence is evident in his early engravings, such as the goldsmith-like shading in *Pyramus and Thisbe* (1505), h...