The Marriage of the Virgin

Raphael 1483–1520

The Marriage of the Virgin (1504) by Raphael. Its palette is led by bistre (#28211d, 22%) and golden umber (#a88554, 20%), with accents of dark amber brown, rich scarlet brown, bone and dark red. Overall the canvas is mid-toned, moderately saturated and warm.

Color reading

Brown and gray cover about three-fifths of the canvas. Its most vivid color, dark red #941F22, takes up just 3% of it.

Palette

#28211d MG 219 bistre 21.6% of canvas
#a88554 MG 182 golden umber 20.0% of canvas
#523c2a MG 168 dark amber brown 15.6% of canvas
#9ba2b5 MG 094 light muted blue 12.2% of canvas
#805d39 MG 161 rich scarlet brown 11.5% of canvas
#5d666e MG 216 dark grey 9.0% of canvas
#d3c3a9 MG 171 bone 7.0% of canvas
#941f22 MG 020 dark red 3.2% of canvas

Color families

Brown 37%, Gray 25%, Black 17%, Yellow 11%, Blue 5%

Measurements

Lightness: 0.50
Contrast: 0.54
Vividness: 0.043
Warmth: +0.93
Complexity: 229 cells
Hue range: 0.40
Focus: 0.12

Composition

55% of the visual weight is in the right half, 59% in the upper half. Symmetry 0.70 (how closely its shapes and edges mirror each other). 15% of the canvas is calm space. Half of the detail sits in 30% of the canvas. Measured from the image, not a rule the painter followed.

Details

Date: 1504
Medium: Oil on panel
Size: 175.0 × 118.0 cm
Genre: religious art
Collection: Pinacoteca di Brera, Milan

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