Sistine Madonna
Raphael's altarpiece, famed for its putti and German Romantic influence.
The *Sistine Madonna* (also known as the *Madonna di San Sisto*) is an oil painting by the Italian artist Raphael. Pope Julius II commissioned it in 1512 for the church of San Sisto in Piacenza, and Raphael likely painted it around 1513–1514. It is among the last Madonnas he completed. Giorgio Vasari called it “a truly rare and extraordinary work.” The painting was moved to Dresden in 1754 and became highly influential in German and Russian art. After World War II, it was taken to Moscow for a decade before being returned to Dresden, where it remains.
The oil-on-canvas work measures 265 cm by 196 cm. It shows the Madonna holding the Christ Child, flanked by Saint Sixtus and Saint Barbara, standing on clouds above dozens of faint putti. Two distinctive winged putti rest on their elbows beneath her.
Pigment analysis reveals typical Renaissance materials: malachite mixed with orpiment in the green drapery at the top, natural ultramarine with lead white in the Madonna’s blue robe, and a mix of lead-tin-yellow, vermilion, and lead white in Saint Barbara’s yellow sleeve.
The painting was commissioned by Pope Julius II to honor his late uncle, Pope Sixtus IV, as an altarpiece for the Benedictine Monastery of San Sisto in Piacenza, a church with which the Rovere family had long ties. The commission required depictions of both Saints Sixtus and Barbara. Legend says that when Antonio da Correggio first saw the piece, he cried out, “And I also, I am a painter!”
In 1754, Augustus III of Poland bought the painting for 110,000–120,000 francs and moved it to Dresden, where it gained new fame; this remained the highest price paid for a painting for many decades. According to Hans Belting in *The Invisible Masterpiece*, the painting “has fired the Germans’ imagination, uniting or dividing them in the debate about art and religion.” It was often called “supreme among the world’s paintings” and “divine,” partly because it presents a divine child as art’s highest ideal. Augustus is said to have moved his throne to display it better. Johann Joachim Winckelmann celebrated it in his influential *Geschichte der Kunst des Alterthums* (1764), placing it at the center of debates about its Classical versus Christian elements. Germans alternately saw Raphael as a “devout Christian” or a “‘divine’ Pagan,” with a Mary who could have been Juno. The legend of “Raphael’s Dream” arose in
- Artist
- Raphael
- Year
- c. 1513–1514
- Medium
- Oil on canvas
- Dimensions
- 265 cm × 196 cm
- Location
- Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister, Dresden
- Commissioned by
- Pope Julius II
Lore & Background
The painting was commissioned by Pope Julius II in honor of his late uncle, Pope Sixtus IV, as an altarpiece for the basilica church of the Benedictine Monastery of San Sisto in Piacenza. The commission required the depiction of both Saints Sixtus and Barbara. Legend has it that when Antonio da Correggio first saw the piece, he cried, 'And I also, I am a painter!' Giorgio Vasari called it 'a truly rare and extraordinary work.'
In 1754, Augustus III of Poland purchased the painting for 110,000–120,000 francs, moving it to Dresden, where it achieved new prominence. The painting became central to German debates about art and religion, celebrated by Johann Joachim Winckelmann in his Geschichte der Kunst des Alterthums (1764). A legend arose in the late 18th century—'Raphael's Dream'—claiming Raphael received a heavenly vision that enabled him to paint the divine Madonna. The painting influenced Goethe, Wagner, Nietzsche, and Dostoyevsky, who called it 'the greatest revelation of the human spirit.'
During World War II, the painting was stored in a tunnel in Saxon Switzerland and later taken by the Red Army to Moscow. It was exhibited at the Pushkin Museum in 1946 and returned to Germany in 1955 amid controversy about its storage conditions. The commander of the retrieval brigade and Russian art historian Andrei Chegodaev denied stories of damage, calling them lies. The painting now resides in the Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister, where it is described as the 'most famous' and 'showpiece' of the collection.
Reader's Guide
The Sistine Madonna is significant as one of Raphael's last Madonnas and a defining work of the High Renaissance. Its composition—the Madonna and Child flanked by saints on clouds, with two iconic putti at the bottom—has become instantly recognizable. The painting's influence extended deeply into German culture, where it was hailed as 'supreme among the world's paintings' and sparked debates about its Classical versus Christian elements. It inspired Romantic writers and artists, and its putti became widely marketed images. The painting's history also reflects 20th-century geopolitics: its removal to Moscow and return to Dresden highlighted tensions between Soviet and German cultural claims. The controversy over its wartime storage conditions remains unresolved, with conflicting accounts of damage and rescue. Today, the Sistine Madonna remains a central attraction of the Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister, celebrated for its artistic mastery and storied past.
Did You Know?
- The painting was commissioned by Pope Julius II in honor of his late uncle, Pope Sixtus IV.
- In 1754, Augustus III of Poland purchased it for 110,000–120,000 francs, the highest price paid for any painting for many decades.
- Legend says that during the 1849 Dresden uprising, Mikhail Bakunin proposed hanging the painting on barricades to deter Prussian fire.
- The two winged putti at the bottom of the painting are said to have been inspired by Raphael's model's children or by children he saw at a baker's shop.
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