Raffaello - Nach rechts stehender weiblicher Akt, der Kopf ist halb abgeschnitten (Venus Mazarin), 36046v

This drawing captures a woman in a graceful contrapposto pose, with her weight shifted onto her right leg. She holds a cluster of drapery against her thigh with her left hand while her right arm is folded across her chest. The sketch focuses on the anatomical rendering of the torso and limbs, though the top of the head is cut off by the edge of the paper.

This study reflects the Renaissance practice of drawing from classical antiquities to recover the 'ideal' proportions of the human form. Within the Neoplatonic tradition championed in Raphael's circle, the figure of Venus represented the 'Celestial Venus,' a symbol of divine beauty and the intellectual harmony of the cosmos.