A young woman sits in a loggia, framed by two columns, with a distant blue-green landscape stretching behind her under a clear sky. She gazes outward with a calm, steady expression, her pale face softly illuminated so that her features are clearly defined against the background. The woman wears a dress of muted green and cream, with deep red sleeves that are gathered and voluminous, and a sash of matching red encircling her waist.

Her hands rest in her lap, cradling a small unicorn whose head is turned toward the viewer, its horn and gentle face rendered with fine detail. The light falls evenly across the scene, picking out the textures of skin, fabric, and fur, while the brushwork appears smooth and precise, with subtle gradations of color in the folds of the dress and the landscape beyond. The composition is balanced, with the figure placed slightly off-center and the architectural elements providing a sense of depth and structure.

Small details, such as the glint of the jewel and the delicate shadow beneath the unicorn’s chin, contribute to the sense of realism and refinement. The subject of this portrait is an unmarried young woman, shown holding a unicorn, a creature traditionally associated with chastity. Raphael painted this work between 1505 and 1506, according to art historians and the Galleria Borghese. The painting was originally created on a wooden panel and later transferred to canvas during conservation in the twentieth century.

At one time, the painting was altered to depict Saint Catherine of Alexandria, with later restorations uncovering Raphael’s original composition and revealing the unicorn once more.