Fotoreproductie van La belle jardinière door Rafaël 1850 - 1900

Gustav Schauer made this photographic reproduction of Raphael’s “La belle jardinière,” or “Virgin and Child with Saint John the Baptist,” sometime in the 19th century. The original painting was made in Florence around 1507, during the High Renaissance. Raphael's work exemplifies the Renaissance humanist interest in ideal beauty and harmony. It became an object of pilgrimage. With photography’s advent in the 19th century, artworks became infinitely reproducible. Schauer’s photograph thus democratized access to high art. It brings the aura of Renaissance masterpiece to a wider public. The distribution of photographic reproductions also changed how art was understood and valued. It detached it from its unique physical presence and embedding in particular collections. Understanding this image today involves understanding the history of art institutions, photographic reproduction, and the changing social value of art across centuries. Historians rely on archives, period writings, and material culture to trace these transformations.