Young Woman with Unicorn

Young Woman with Unicorn
Artist Raphael
Year 1506
Medium Oil on panel
Location Galleria Borghese, Rome
Dimensions 26 in × 24 in
65 cm × 61 cm

The Young Woman with Unicorn was executed by Italian High Renaissance Painter Raphael in 1506. It was an oil painting on canvas applied to wood. The portrait was believed to be inspired by Leonardo Da Vinci’s Mona Lisa. The woman in the portrait was identified as Saint Catherine of Alexandria in the inventory of the Gallery in 1760. It was first attributed to Perugino and was attributed to Raphael only when the painting was restored in between 1934-1936. It is only the time that the unicorn was revealed because the heavy painting was removed. The unicorn symbolizes purity in the medieval romance in place of Catherine’s wheel. The painting is now housed in Galleria Borghese.