Virgin and Sleeping Christ Child with the Infant John the Baptist c. 18th century

Raphael made this pen and brown ink drawing, Virgin and Sleeping Christ Child with the Infant John the Baptist, sometime in the early 16th century. Drawings like this one were often made in preparation for larger paintings. The arrangement of figures is a common one, particularly during the Renaissance in Italy. Mary gazes down at her son, Christ, while the infant John looks on in adoration. But beyond the typical religious iconography, Raphael inserts a crumbling ruin into the background. It is a subtle reminder of the rise of Christianity out of the ruins of the Roman Empire, when the institutions of the Catholic Church and the Papal seat in Rome rose to prominence. Art historians must research patronage, religious movements, and the establishment of the art market to understand the importance of an image like this one. After all, the meaning of art is contingent on social and institutional context.