Young Man Carrying an Old Man (Aeneas and Anchises)

The drawing focuses on the intense physical effort of a muscular young man supporting the weight of a frail, older man. The artist uses cross-hatching and fine line work to contrast the tension in the carrier's legs and back with the limp, withered limbs of the father. This study was created for the fresco 'The Fire in the Borgo' in the Vatican, where this pair appears escaping a burning building.

In the Renaissance, the image of Aeneas and Anchises was a primary emblem of 'pietas' (filial duty), but it also served a Neoplatonic function as an allegory for the transmission of ancient wisdom across generations. By including this Virgilian motif in the Vatican, Raphael helped bridge classical antiquity with the Christian present, a core pursuit of the 'prisca theologia' movement.