Raffaello Sanzio (1483-1520), After - Portrait of Pietro Bembo

After Raffaello Sanzio (1483–1520)

Portrait of Pietro Bembo
Oil on board

This finely executed portrait represents the distinguished Venetian humanist and cardinal Pietro Bembo, shown in a red cap and dark robe against a serene landscape background. The composition follows the celebrated prototype by Raffaello Sanzio, painted around 1504 and today held in the Museum of Fine Arts, Budapest.

The original work achieved international attention when it was stolen in 1983 from the Budapest museum, together with six other Italian Renaissance masterpieces, including Raphael’s Esterházy Madonna and Giorgione’s Self-Portrait. The theft triggered the large-scale “Operation Budapest” investigation, and the paintings were later recovered in a Greek monastery in 1984.

Executed with sensitivity and refined modelling, the present painting captures the calm dignity and intellectual poise characteristic of Raphael’s portraiture. Its subtle transitions of tone and atmospheric landscape reflect the enduring appeal of the High Renaissance ideal.

Provenance: Private Austrian collection.
Size: 51 × 36.5 cm