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Raphael: Architect, Archaeologist, and Protector of Ancient Rome

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Raphael: Architect, Archaeologist, and Protector of Ancient Rome
Interior of the Pantheon (recto), circa 1506–7, by Raphael. Pen and two different shades of brown ink, over traces of stylus indentation and limited use of a ruler; 10 7/8 inches by 16 inches. Gabinetto dei Disegni e delle Stampe, Gallerie degli Uffizi, Florence, Italy. Gabinetto Fotografico delle Gallerie degli Uffizi
Lorraine Ferrier
Updated:
LONDON—Renaissance architects once used ancient Roman art as building materials. You read that right. In Rome, workmen quarried ancient sites and turned ancient sculptures and decorative arts into mortar.
In a 1519 letter to Pope Leo X, Raphael and his friend the courtier and diplomat Baldassare Castiglione appealed to the pope to protect the city’s ancient art. Both men drafted the letter, but it’s written as if it were from Raphael.  
Lorraine Ferrier
Lorraine Ferrier
Author
Lorraine Ferrier writes about fine arts and craftsmanship for The Epoch Times. She focuses on artists and artisans, primarily in North America and Europe, who imbue their works with beauty and traditional values. She's especially interested in giving a voice to the rare and lesser-known arts and crafts, in the hope that we can preserve our traditional art heritage. She lives and writes in a London suburb, in England.
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