Raphael: The Miraculous Draught of Fishes

PD Image: The Miraculous Draught of Fishes (1515), painting by Raphael shows Jesus in the boat with fishes (first miracle).

The Miraculous Draught of Fishes refers to two miracles attributed to Jesus in the Christian canonical Gospels, in which the apostles were fishing unsuccessfully in the Sea of Galilee when Jesus told them to cast the net again and when they did so, they were rewarded with great catches.

According to Luke, on the day of this FIRST miracle, Jesus was preaching near the Lake of Genesareth (Sea of Galilee), when he saw two boats. Boarding the boat of Simon (Peter), and moving out a little from shore Jesus preached to the people from the boat, and said to Peter, "Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch."

To this, Peter answered, "Master, we've worked hard all night and haven't caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets."

But to everyone’s surprise, "they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break," and they had to seek help from another boat. Seeing the huge haul of fish which filled both boats almost to the sinking point, Peter fell at Jesus' feet and said, "Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!"

Jesus advised Peter and his partners James and John, "Don't be afraid; from now on you will catch men," after which the men left everything and followed Jesus.

Portraits of fornarina Margherita Luti by Raphael

PD Image: La fornarina (1518-1519), also known as The Portrait of a Young Woman, oil on wood painting by the Italian High Renaissance master Raphael, dimensions 85 cm x 60 cm (33 in x 24 in) located at Galleria Nazionale d'Arte Antica in Palazzo Barberini, Rome.
The woman portrayed in this painting is traditionally identified as the fornarina (daughter of a baker) Margherita Luti, Raphael's Roman mistress, depicted in an oriental style. Click and enlarge the photo so that you can read the signature of the artist, RAPHAEL URBINAS on the narrow band on her left arm. The same artist’s model Margherita Luti appears in another portrait by Raphael, La Velata.

PD Image: La Velata, or La Donna Velata (The woman with a veil or The Veiled Woman) by Raphael (1514-1515), oil on canvas, dimensions 82 by 61 cm (32 by 24 inches), located at Palatine Gallery, Palazzo Pitti, Florence, Italy. La Velata is considered one of the most famous portraits by Raphael.

The Three Graces by various artists

PD photo: The Three Graces, a statue near the River Panke (Kunst im Schlosspark Pankow an der Panke: Drei Grazien), photo taken on 4 June 2008. The River Panke is a tributary river of Spree in Berlin, Germany.

PD Photo: ‘Muses’ (The Three Graces), a 1st century fresco from the ancient city of Pompeii, which was destroyed by the eruption of the volcano Mount Vesuvius in 79 CE.

PD Image: The Three Graces (1504-1505), oil on panel painting by Italian painter and architect Raphael (1483-1520), size 17 cm x 17 cm (6.69 in x 6.69 in) located at Musée Condé, Chantilly in France. Compare Image above with this painting; its close resemblance suggests Raphael probably based his work on the Muses of Pompeii.

PD Photo: The Three Graces in Cyrene Antiquity Museum, Cyrene, Libya: The one-room-sculpture museum at Cyrene has collections rivaling many other museums and it contains many invaluable sculptures showing the richness of Cyrene, which was founded by the ancient Greeks. Several exquisite marble sculptures that once adorned ancient buildings in Cyrene.

PD Photo: The Three Graces (Les-Trois-Grâces), created in 1763 by Charles André van Loo (1705-1765), located at Los Angeles County Museum of Art, USA.

The Three Graces by Antonio Canova located at Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg, Russia.

In Greek mythology, Charites are goddesses of charm, beauty, nature, human creativity and fertility. In art generally they are depicted as three sisters (from youngest to oldest), Aglaea (for beauty), Euphrosyne (mirth) and Thalia (good cheer). In Roman mythology they are known as the Gratiae, or the Graces. The Graces presided over banquets and gatherings organized to entertain the guests of Gods. They have always been very favourite subjects of paintings and sculptures, for instance, Raphael, Antonio Canova, Bertel Thorvaldsen, and others as in the photos above.

The Greek traveler and geographer of the 2nd century AD Pausanias wrote on the representation of the Graces, "Who it was who first represented the Graces naked, whether in sculpture or in painting, I could not discover. During the earlier period, certainly, sculptors and painters alike represented them draped. At Smyrna, for instance, in the sanctuary of the Nemeses, above the images have been dedicated Graces of gold, the work of Bupalus; and in the Music Hall in the same city there is a portrait of a Grace, painted by Apelles. At Pergamus likewise, in the chamber of Attalus, are other images of Graces made by Bupalus; and near what is called the Pythium there is a portrait of Graces, painted by Pythagoras the Parian. Socrates too, son of Sophroniscus, made images of Graces for the Athenians, which are before the entrance to the Acropolis. Also, Socrates was known to have destroyed his own work as he progressed deeper into his life of philosophy and search of the conscious due to his iconoclastic attitude towards art and the like. All these are alike draped; but later artists, I do not know the reason, have changed the way of portraying them. Certainly to-day sculptors and painters represent Graces naked".

The Charities were generally considered as the daughters of Zeus and Eurynome. According to Homer, they were part of the entourage of Aphrodite. The Charites were also associated with the underworld and the Eleusinian Mysteries.

The Marriage of the Virgin, painting by Raphael

Image: The Marriage of the Virgin (1504), painting by Raphael, oil on round-headed panel, dimensions 170 cm x 118 cm, located at Pinacoteca di Brera, Milan, Italy.

The Marriage of the Virgin, the 1504 painting by the Italian painter Raphael, is housed in the Pinacoteca di Brera of Milan. According to critics, the painting was inspired by two compositions by Perugino, ‘Christ Delivering the Keys to St. Peter’ and ‘The Marriage of the Virgin’ now in the Museum of Caën.

The main characters of ‘The Marriage of the Virgin’ stand in the foreground: Joseph is solemnly placing the marriage ring on the Virgin's finger and holding the flowering staff, the symbol that he is the chosen one, in his left hand. His wooden staff has blossomed, while those of the other suitors have remained dry. Two of the disappointed suitors are breaking their staffs. The polygonal temple in the background dominates the composition of the painting. The temple is the centre of a radial system composed of the steps, portico, buttresses and drum and extended by the pavement.

Caught at the culminating moment of the marriage ceremony, the people attending the wedding also repeat the circular rhythm of the composition. The three main characters and two members of the marriage party are set in the foreground, while others are arranged in depth, progressively farther away from the central axis. This axis, marked by the wedding ring, divides the paved surface and the temple into two symmetrical parts.

The painting (signed and dated: RAPHAEL URBINAS MDIIII) was commissioned by the Albizzini family for the chapel of St Joseph in the church of S. Francesco of the Minorities at Città di Castello in Umbria. In 1798 the town was forced to donate the painting to General Giuseppe Lechi, an army officer, who sold it to the Milanese art dealer Sannazzari, who bequeathed it to the main hospital of Milan in 1804. Two years later it was acquired by the Academy of Fine Arts and was exhibited at the Brera.

The painting was attacked by vandals some years ago. The signed and dated painting, ‘The Marriage of the Virgin’ by Raphael is a particularly beloved painting by Raphael and one of the unparalleled favorites of the Renaissance period. The painting is specially noted because Raphael made the transition from a devoted follower of Perugino to an artist who represents the epitome of the Renaissance. Also, this painting is of special importance because it was executed immediately before Raphael went to Florence where he experienced firsthand the sculpture of Donatello as well as the works of his most famous older contemporaries, Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo.