The Ecstasis of St. Cecilia is a painting by the Italian High Renaissance painter Raphael.
Raphael probably accompanied Pope Leo X when he went to Bologna to meet the King of France, Francis I, in 1515. He may have passed through Florence, where Leo was welcomed with great enthusiasm by his fellow citizens. Leonardo da Vinci - who later accepted the French King's invitation to Paris - and Michelangelo - to whom Leo X commissioned the New Sacristy...
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The Ecstasis of St. Cecilia is a painting by the Italian High Renaissance painter Raphael.
Raphael probably accompanied Pope Leo X when he went to Bologna to meet the King of France, Francis I, in 1515. He may have passed through Florence, where Leo was welcomed with great enthusiasm by his fellow citizens. Leonardo da Vinci - who later accepted the French King's invitation to Paris - and Michelangelo - to whom Leo X commissioned the New Sacristy of San Lorenzo - also followed the Pope.
A letter which Raphael sent to the painter, Francesco Francia, provides proof of this journey. According to a legend, Francesco Francia died after seeing the St. Cecilia which Raphael painted for the Church of San Giovanni in Monte in Bologna. The story is almost credible, for the Bolognese artistic environment still revolved around the style of Perugino. The painting was commissioned by Elena Duglioli dall'Olio of Bologna. She was famous for having visions and ecstatic fits in which music played a...
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