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Secondary sourceBook1528

The Book of the Courtier

Baldassarre Castiglione · 1528

A philosophical dialogue by Baldassarre Castiglione portraying the Urbino court, naming Raphael among the great painters of the age.

Castiglione's book names Raphael among the great painters and portrays the court culture that shaped him.

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Title page of a 1528 Italian printed book reading 'IL LIBRO DEL CORTEGIANO DEL CONTE BALDESAR CASTIGLIONE' in spaced capitals, with a woodcut of an anchor entwined by a dolphin and a rope-like coil, the letters 'AL' and 'DVS' on either side, and a printed privilege notice below in Italian.
Baldassarre Castiglione, Il Libro del Cortegiano, 1528. Aldine Press, Venice.

About this source

What it is

This is a printed book published in 1528 by Baldassarre Castiglione, set as a dialogue among courtiers at the Duchy of Urbino. Castiglione composed it over about twenty years, drawing on his own years as a courtier there.

Why it matters

The book describes the ideals of manners, speech and grace that shaped the courts Raphael worked in and moved through. It names Raphael among the great painters of the time, showing how contemporaries already saw him as a leading artist of his era. It also reveals the culture of courtesy, rank and self-presentation that influenced artists at princely courts like Urbino.

Look closer

  • Why might a book about manners and conversation also mention painters?
  • What does it tell us that Castiglione set his book among real courtiers he had known?
  • What is left out of a book written to idealize a vanishing way of life?

This book is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Raphael on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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