After the complexities of Leonardo and Michelangelo, it is a relief to find Raffaello Sanzio, 1483-1520), a genius no less than they, but one whose daily ways were those of other men. He was born in the small town of Urbino, an artistic centre, and received his earliest training from his father. Later, his father sent him to Pietro Perugino (active 1478-1523) who, like Verrocchio and Ghirlandaio, was an artist of considerable gifts. But while Leonardo and Michelangelo quickly outgrew their teachers and show no later trace of influence, Raphael had a precocious talent right from the beginning and was an innate absorber of influences. Whatever he saw, he took possession of, always growing by what was taught to him. An early Raphael can look like a Perugino. In fact, Perugino's Crucifixion with the Virgin, St John, St Jerome, and St Mary Magdalene was thought to be by Raphael until evidence proved it was given to the church of San Gimigniano in 1497, when Raphael was only 14. It is undoubtedly a Perugino, calmly emotional, and pious rather than passionate. A fascinating context for this scene of quiet faith is the notorious unbelief on the part of the artist, who was described by Vasari as an atheist. He painted what would be acceptable, not what he felt to be true, and this may account for the lack of real emotive impact.

Maddalena

St. George Fighting the Dragon
1504-06 (220 Kb); Oil on wood, 28.5 x 21.5 cm (11 1/8 x 8 3/8 in); National Gallery of Art, Washington

St. George Fighting the Dragon
1505 (180 Kb); Oil on wood, 30 x 26 cm (12 x 10 1/4 in); Musee du Louvre, Paris

The small Cowper Madonna
c. 1505 (120 Kb); Oil on wood, 59.5 x 44 cm (23 3/8 x 17 3/8 in); National Gallery of Art, Washington

Bindo Altoviti
c. 1515 (120 Kb); Oil on wood, 60 x 44 cm (23 1/2 x 17 1/4 in); National Gallery of Art, Washington