Tapestry Cartoon: Two Heads from the Massacre of the Innocents

Executed in a highly finished drawing, the composition employs a Mannerist approach: elongated proportions, stylized poses, and a heightened sense of drama. The profiles are rendered with meticulous attention to hair texture and facial detail, while the lack of background suggests the image functioned as a cartoon—a full‑size template for a woven tapestry.

Romano produced the cartoon as part of a series of designs for a tapestry commission, likely intended for a devotional setting. After remaining in private hands for centuries, the fragment entered the Scottish National Gallery in the 20th century, where it is displayed as an example of the artist’s transition from High Renaissance classicism to Mannerist experimentation.