A masterfully executed 18th-century copper engraving by Domenico Cunego, depicting the Greek philosopher Diogenes. This piece is part of a celebrated series based on Raphael’s fresco “The School of Athens” in the Apostolic Palace, Vatican City.
This striking portrait showcases Cunego’s technical prowess in line engraving. The work captures Diogenes with a raw, detached expression, characterized by his weathered skin, balding head, and coarse mantle. The intense cross-hatching highlights the anatomical realism of the figure, honoring the original Renaissance aesthetic.
Diogenes of Sinope is famously depicted in Raphael’s fresco as a solitary figure reclining on the steps. As the most famous of the Cynics, his presence in this series symbolizes the rejection of worldly vanity and the pursuit of a life lived according to nature, independent of social convention.
Domenico Cunego (Italian, 1726–1803)
Raphael (Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino, 1483–1520)
Copper Engraving / Etching
Circa 1785
Scuola d’Atene (The School of Athens)
Laid paper (typical of late 18th-century European prints)
Rome, Italy
Domenico Cunego’s series was a massive undertaking in the 1780s intended to preserve and promote Raphael’s genius. Plate 20 allows for a minute study of the anatomical realism that Raphael introduced into his later works, here translated into the precise medium of copperplate.
Detailed descriptions of paper quality, margins, and preservation state.
Direct history of the collection’s origin.
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