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Head of the Virgin

Drawing
early 16th century (made)
Artist/Maker
Oggiono, Marco D' (artist)
Raphael (artist)
Place of origin
Italy (drawn)

This drawing relates to Marco D'Oggiono's Virgin and Child in the National Gallery. It was pricked with holes along the contours of the Virgin's face, and then 'pounced' with coloured powder. This transferred the design to another ground below, ready for painting. The relative scantness of the shading between the delicate contours is explained by this process, which only allows principle lines to be feasibly transferred and mars the ground, rendering much further 'finish' pointless.

Object details

Category
Drawings
Object type
Drawing
TitleHead of the Virgin (generic title)
Materials and techniques
Black chalk, pricked for transfer
Black Chalk
Drawing
Pricking
Brief description
D'Oggiono, Marco, Head of a woman, possibly depicting the Virgin Mary; Previously ascribed to Raphael and said to be a portrait of La Fornarina ('Portrait of a Young Woman'); Black chalk, pricked for transfer; Italian; Early 16th century.
Physical description
Head of a woman, possibly depicting the Virgin Mary; Black chalk, pricked for transfer.
Dimensions
  • Height: 6.4in
  • Width: 5.5in
Original measurements converted from fractional inches into decimal inches (rounded to one decimal place). Dimensions taken from: DYCE COLLECTION. A Catalogue of the Paintings, Miniatures, Drawings, Engravings, Rings and Miscellaneous Objects Bequeathed by The Reverend Alexander Dyce. London : South Kensington Museum, 1874.
Marks and inscriptions
  • (Bears the collector's mark of C. Josi.)
  • 'Rapaelo Urbino. L'on dit que c'est le Portrait de sa Maitresse.' (Previous attribution to Raphael of Urbino inscribed in ink along the bottom of the sheet.)
Credit line
Bequeathed by Rev. Alexander Dyce
Object history
Previously ascribed to Raphael and said to be a portrait of La Fornarina (Raphael's 'Portrait of a Young Woman').
Subjects depicted
Woman's Head
Virgin Mary
Summary
This drawing relates to Marco D'Oggiono's Virgin and Child in the National Gallery. It was pricked with holes along the contours of the Virgin's face, and then 'pounced' with coloured powder. This transferred the design to another ground below, ready for painting. The relative scantness of the shading between the delicate contours is explained by this process, which only allows principle lines to be feasibly transferred and mars the ground, rendering much further 'finish' pointless.
Bibliographic references
  • DYCE COLLECTION. A Catalogue of the Paintings, Miniatures, Drawings, Engravings, Rings and Miscellaneous Objects Bequeathed by The Reverend Alexander Dyce. London : South Kensington Museum, 1874.
  • Lambert, Susan. Drawing: Technique & Purpose. London: Victoria & Albert Museum, 1981. 19 p.
Collection
Prints, Drawings & Paintings Collection
Accession number
DYCE.222

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Record createdJune 30, 2009
Record URL
https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O1028536/head-of-the-virgin-drawing-oggiono-marco-d/
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