RA Christmas Cards Raphael Esterhazy Madonna Pack of 10

This pack of ten Christmas cards features The Esterhazy Madonna by Raphael.

The message inside: With best wishes for Christmas and the New Year

Raphael (Raffaello Sanzio of Urbino)
The Esterhazy Madonna, 1507-08
Tempera and oil on poplar panel
29 x 21.5 cm 

The younger contemporary of Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo, Raffaello di Giovanni Santi (1483-1520) was one of the great masters of the Italian High Renaissance best known for his tender and compassionate images of The Madonna and large figure compositions in the Palace of the Vatican, Rome. Raphael was the son of the artist Giovanni Santi, and encouraged by his father, he began training under the Umbrian painter Pietro Perugino at a very young age. Raphael died in Rome on his 37th birthday, days after contracting a fever.