The Marriage of the Virgin

The Marriage of the Virgin, oil painting, also known as Lo Sposalizio, that was created in 1504 by Italian Renaissance artist Raphael. It was commissioned by the Albizzini family for a church in the Città del Castello outside Perugia, home to a ring believed to be that given to Mary by Joseph when they wed.

The theme of the marriage of the Virgin Mary to Joseph was a popular one in Renaissance art, drawn from a story in the Golden Legend, a 13th-century collection of stories of early saints. The story says that there were many suitors for Mary’s hand, each carrying a staff, but only he whose staff miraculously blossomed was her fore-ordained husband. Perugino, Raphael’s elder master, painted an earlier picture of the same theme, and his influence is visible. Directly in the center of the foreground the Virgin, at left, receives the ring from Joseph, who carries the flowering staff. He is flanked by his rival suitors, one of whom breaks his staff in anger. In both Perugino’s version and Raphael’s, the lines of perspective lead to the vanishing point at the front door of the temple, but in Raphael’s painting the priest’s head is inclined, softening the strict lines of composition.

Raphael’s interest in architecture is evident in the painting of the 16-sided temple before which the wedding takes place. The temple is surrounded by a graceful peristyle, on which Raphael’s signature and the date appear to have been carved. Various figures occupy the space between the wedding and the temple and add to the liveliness and harmony of the scene.