Weaving a spell

We tend to take for granted the fact that the V&A houses one of the great wonders of the Italian High Renaissance: Raphael’s remarkable tapestry cartoons celebrating the lives of St Peter and St Paul.

We tend to take for granted the fact that the V&A houses one of the great wonders of the Italian High Renaissance: Raphael’s remarkable tapestry cartoons celebrating the lives of St Peter and St Paul. These tapestries were designed for the Sistine Chapel to be hung around the lowest tier of the walls on ceremonial occasions, and thus had to complement (if not compete with) Michelangelo’s awesome ceiling decoration. Raphael excelled himself in the inventiveness of these works — they are masterpieces of succinct harmonious design, and feel so right and natural in their depictions that their imagery has subtly influenced the way we visualise biblical characters. To celebrate the Pope’s visit to England, four of the original tapestries are being lent to the V&A by the Vatican Museums.