Recto Group of Musicians

This pen and ink drawing depicts a central female figure in classical drapery looking toward a nude male figure on her right. To the left, another standing figure plays a long wind instrument, likely an aulos or flute. The sketch uses fine cross-hatching to define light and shadow, capturing a moment of musical and intellectual exchange.

This work is a preliminary study for Raphael’s fresco 'The Parnassus' in the Vatican’s Stanza della Segnatura. It illustrates the Renaissance Neoplatonic synthesis of poetry, music, and divine inspiration (furor poeticus), a concept central to the thought of Marsilio Ficino and the Roman humanists.