The Art of Italy in the Royal Collection comes to The Queen's Gallery, Palace of Holyroodhouse in two parts in 2008 and 2009. Part one, seen here, presents 16th-century art from the Italian High Renaissance and Mannerism. Works by Leonardo, Michelangelo, Raphael, Tintoretto and Titian are among the 74 paintings and drawings brought together from royal palaces and residences across Britain.
The Stuart king Charles I (1600-1649) was first responsible for bringing 16th- and 17th-century Italian art to the Royal Collection. Most of his acquisitions were sold on Cromwell's order during the Interregnum. After the Restoration of the Monarchy in 1660, Charles II (1630-1685) was particularly keen to track down and regain his father's Italian pieces. From then on, other royal patrons (notably Frederick, Prince of Wales; George III; George IV; Queen Victoria and Prince Albert; and Queen Mary, consort of George V) have augmented this key component of the Royal Collection.
Images 1-5 of 5
 Neptune, ca. 1504 |  The Holy Family with Saint Jerome, ca. 1519 |  Portrait of Andrea Odoni, 1527 |  Portrait of a Lady in Green, ca. 1528-32 |
 The Fall of Phaeton, 1533 |
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