Such was the father to whom there was born at Urbino, on the 6th of April, 1483,[*166] a son RAFFAELE[167]; the superiority of whose qualities to those of preceding artists, and to ordinary men, has been acknowledged in several languages by the epithet "divine." Although ever the object of pride and popularity to all Italy, the incidents of his life have, until of late years, been comparatively neglected, and more ample justice has been rendered to his fame by ultramontane than by native biographers. Vasari's narrative, though compiled with more than his usual pains, and lavish in laudatory epithets, is far from satisfactory. Its author was the partial historian of a rival school, the favourite pupil of its jealous head. As a Florentine, moreover, he was bound by Italian usage to keep in shadow the merits of all "foreign" competitors and teachers. Raffaele he never saw, whose best pupils had left Rome ere Vasari visited the eternal city: with his Apennine home, its records and memorials, the latter had probably no personal acquaintance. While, therefore, we own our obligations to the writer of Arezzo for many important facts and valuable criticisms, we feel surprised that during above two centuries no attempt was made to supplement his obvious deficiencies. [Footnote *166: The works on Raphael would fill a library. In addition to the usual sources of information, see-- BRANCA, _L'ingegno l'arte e l'amore di R. e la nevrosi del suo genio_ (Firenze, 1895). CAMPORI, _Notizie ined. di R. tratte da docum. dell. archivio palatino di Modena_ (Modena, 1862). CAMPORI, _Notizie e docum. per la vita di Giov. Santi e di R._ (Modena, 1870). CROWE & CAVALCASELLE, _Raphael: His Life and Works_ (London, 1882-1885). FUA, _Raffaello e la Corte di Urbino_, in _Italia Artistica_, An. IV., p. 178 _et seq._ MUNTZ, _R. sa vie, son oeuvre et son temps_ (Paris, 1881). MUNTZ, _Raphael: His Life, Works, and Times_. Edited by Sir W. Armstrong (London, 1896). ALIPPI, _Un nuovo documento int. a R._ (Urbino, 1880). ROSSI, _La casa e lo stemma di R._, in _Arch. St. dell'arte_ (Roma), An. I., fasc. I. ANON., _La Casa di R. in Roma_, in _Arte e Storia_ (Firenze), An. VI., No. 17. RICCI, _La Gloria d'Urbino_ (Bologna, 1898). ANON., Notice of a portrait of R. in the collection of James Dennistoun (Edinburgh, 1842).] [Footnote 167: We have already accounted for the change of his surname to Sanzio, at p. 216. His Christian name, in modern Italian Raffaello, seems to have been spelt by himself Raphællo and Raffaele. *Raphael was born on Good Friday, 28 March, 1483.] [Illustration: _Anderson_ RAPHAEL _After the portrait by himself in the Uffizi Gallery, Florence_] Another meagre life of Raffaele, composed soon after his death, and upon which Vasari seems to have drawn largely, was published by Comolli in 1790, from an anonymous MS.