Head of a Youth in Profile, ca. 1522
Red chalk
8 1/4 x 5 1/8 in. (21 x 13 cm)
The Ashmolean Museum, Oxford; bequeathed by Dr. Gerhard Weiler, 1995
© Ashmolean Museum, University of Oxford
This sheet relates to the head of the angel in The Madonna of the Steps. Several strokes of chalk explore the curve of the figure's chin and bump of his Adam's apple as he extends his neck to look upward and slightly to his right, with parted lips. The drawing represents the particular challenge of creating an expressive profile in a figure turned away from the viewer.