The Raphael Loggias in the New Hermitage

Empress Catherine II was enchanted with the Vatican frescoes, created in 1517-19 by Raphael and his pupils for Pope Leo X, which she had seen reproduced in colour prints. She wanted to commission something similar for Russia. At the empress’s request a group was organized to copy the original frescoes. The group was led by the Austrian painter Christoph Unterberger, a pupil and associate of Anton Raphael Mengs. Rather than using the technique of fresco, it was decided to reproduce the original compositions in egg tempera on canvases, which would then be mounted to the walls and ceilings of the gallery created by the architect Giacomo Quarenghi.