Casa Santi, House museum in Urbino, Italy.
Casa Santi is a three-story townhouse in Urbino, known as the birthplace and house museum of the painter Raphael. Its rooms span several floors and display paintings, frescoes, and objects from the 15th and early 16th centuries.
Giovanni Santi, a court painter in Urbino, acquired this building in the 15th century as a family home. His son Raphael was born here in 1483 and later became one of the most influential figures in European painting.
The house takes its name from Giovanni Santi, Raphael's father, and its rooms still show how a Renaissance artist's family lived and worked day to day. Visitors can see original furnishings and personal objects that bring this domestic world into focus.
The rooms are easy to follow and do not take long to visit, though several staircases connect the floors and require some mobility. A guided tour can help make sense of the works on display and the story behind each space.
The room where Raphael was born contains a fresco of the Madonna with Child that is attributed to the young Raphael himself, painted during his early years in the house. It is one of the very few works by him that can still be seen in the place where he grew up.
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