Portrait of Pope Leo X

Portrait of Pope Leo X
Artist Raphael
Year 1518-1519
Medium Oil on wood
Location Uffizi, Florence
Dimensions 61 in × 47 in
154 cm × 119 cm

The Italian painter, Raphael, was famed for creating images of the Madonna, saints and heavenly figures but between the years 1518 to 1519, people were surprised with how he depicted Pope Leo X.

The oil painting shows the pope seated on a chair while having just read a manuscript, and accompanied by two cardinals. He was painted not as someone who is filled with poise and grandeur, but someone who is experiencing the consequences of old age and appears to be problematic. It was said that Raphael depicted the Holy Father in this manner to illustrate the dark years of the Catholic Church at that time due to the beginnings of Reformation.