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Raffaello Sanzio was born in Urbino in the 1483 and was one of the greatest painter of
italian renaissance. Among his most important works there is the Sposalizio della Vergine,
in which it was made a recent restoration, and the Trasfigurazione at Pinacoteca Vaticana. The Dama Col Liocorno is previous to these
two paintings, datable about 1505 1506, and it's preserved at Galleria Borghese of Roma.
Initially attributed to Perugino, this represents a young florence woman dressed with a early '500 precious suit,
the Gamurra. This dress have large red velvet sleeves and with golden silk corsage.
The painting was commissioned, in all probability, as wedding gift. As we can see from recent studies
and preparatory drawings, this work was initially designed as a portrait of a lady,
then was added a little dog and later still a unicorn. But his actual identity was discovered around
1935, up to that time the picture represents Santa Caterina,
the wheel, the martyrdom symbol, was over the unicorn and it was all wrapped in a cloak.
In the seventeenth century infact someone had decided to transform this portrait
in a portrait of the Saint. In the paint we can see a great seriousness and severity as if to symbolize a complete dedication towards the future husband. Dedication and awareness of marriage,
which can also be seen in the choice of jewelry that the woman is wearing, as the pearl of the sacred symbol of love
and femininity creator, or red gem, which is also a symbol of love, but passionate love.
In the case of the woman marital fidelity is accentuated by the gold chain, cannot ignore
the chain of marital love to prove her love.
Reinforcement of this theme is posthumos representation
of the little dog, symbol of marital fidelity becomes unicorn symbol, in this case, of female virginity.
The attitude of this woman, like the Gioconda, cannot be defined as posing
in a photograph, the same combination of colors is well researched and balanced, as we can
see from the golden hair that is drawn in golden dress, by the combination of cool colors, such the sky the juxtaposition of warm colors, such as full length
and the skin color that blends with that of the balustrade below.
The colums and the balustrade itself suggest
a patrician villa, framing a backgroung landscape with the observer's eye perspective that is
so distant as to seem ethereal, as if marriage did overshadow the outside world be making
only one picture at a distance.