TIZIANO Vecellio
(b. 1490, Pieve di Cadore, d. 1576, Venezia)

Portrait of Pope Julius II

1545-46
Oil on wood, 99 x 82 cm
Galleria Palatina (Palazzo Pitti), Florence

This painting is a copy of Raphael's portrait of Julius II. It is quite likely that Titian was commissioned to copy this portrait by the della Rovere family in Urbino, as the pope was one of their forebears. So far it is not certain which of the numerous versions and copies of Raphael's portrait that already existed during the Renaissance was used as a model by Titian.