Pope Leo X’s papacy developed Rome’s art with commissions by the celebrated Renaissance artist Raphael.
When Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost was elected pope on May 8, 2025, he chose the papal name of Leo XIV. In the long line of Leos as head of the papacy, Pope Leo X is the most famous in terms of art history.
Pope Leo X is the central figure in one of Renaissance artist Raphael’s greatest portraits, that of Leo X with Cardinals Luigi de’ Rossi and Giulio de’ Medici. He also features in the artist’s famous frescoed rooms at the Apostolic Palace; these rooms are now part of the Vatican Museums.
Leo X’s Papacy
Pope Leo X (1475–1521) was born Giovanni di Lorenzo de' Medici. A member of the illustrious Medici family, a banking dynasty that ruled Florence, he grew up in a milieu that valued the arts. His father, known by the sobriquet Lorenzo the Magnificent, was one of the great patrons of the Renaissance. He was a benefactor of Botticelli, Leonardo, and Michelangelo, amongst other giants. From Giovanni’s youth, Lorenzo intended for him to have a career in the church. He was appointed cardinal in 1489, when he was just 13 years old. In 1513, at the age of 37, he was elected pope.
