The Pinacoteca section of the Vatican Museums is where the paintings are. As one might expect,
the Vatican has amassed a formidable collection of religiously-themed paintings over the
centuries, and many noteworthy works are on display in the Pinacoteca. Here are a few:
Last Judgment, Nicolaus and Johannes (12th C.)
Stefaneschi Triptych/Coronation/Madonna
Musical Angels, Melozzo da Forli (ca. 1480)
Musical Angels, Melozzo da Forli (c. 1480)
Pieta, Lucas Cranach the Elder (16th C.)
Altarpieces and Paintings
Rospigliosi Triptych, Bartolomeo da Foligno (15th C.)
Assumption of the Virgin, Niccola Filotesio (1515)
Madonna and Child with Saints, Pietro Perugino (1495)
Nativity/Madonna and Child with Saints
Madonna di Foligno, Raphael (1511-12)
Nativity, Ghirlandaio (15th C.)
Lament Over the Dead Christ, Giovanni Bellini (1473-76)
The Savior/Adoration of the Magi
Adoration of the Magi, Raffaellino del Colle (16th C.)
Vision of St. Helen, Paolo Veronese (c. 1580)
Judith with the Head of Holofernes, Cristofano Allori(?) (17th C.)
Deposition from the Cross, Caravaggio (1600)
Crucifixion of St. Peter, Guido Reni (1604)
Apotheosis of Vincenzo I Gonzaga, Peter Paul Rubens (School) (17th C.)
St. Ignatius of Loyola, Seghers and Wildens (1622-23)
St. Francis Xavier, Seghers and Wildens (1622-23)
Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, Peter Wenzel (18th C.)
Among the Renaissance paintings is the almost-finished Transfiguration by Raphael (1517-20).
Raphael was something of a party animal, and was apparently taken ill following a particularly
disgraceful night of carousing in 1520. He was placed under the care of some of the finest medical
minds in 1520 Rome and consequently did not survive. The Transfiguration was found in his
workshop, and was displayed at his funeral. It is considered to be his last painting.
Transfiguration, Raphael (1517-20)
Transfiguration and Crowning of the Virgin
Crowning of the Virgin (Oddi Altarpiece), Raphael (1502-03)
Less finished is St. Jerome in the Wilderness, by Leonardo da Vinci (ca. 1480-82).
Though the painting never got very far in its development, it shows Leonardo's talents for
composition and anatomical accuracy, and is also interesting as a window into his creative
process.
St. Jerome in the Wilderness, Leonardo da Vinci (ca. 1480-82)
See the next page for some old stuff, from ancient Rome and earlier.
