Raphael never married. Although he was engaged for a short time, he was unmotivated to wed, and the bride-to-be died before they were wed. He did, however, have a long-time mistress, Margherita Luti, who was the daughter of a baker. X-ray analysis of the painting has revealed that the background of the painting was originally painted as a myrtle bush, which was considered a symbol of love and passion. According to Vasari, in his biography of Raphael, his death was brought on by a sudden illness, which was caused by a night of excessive sex with Luti. Being embarrassed and not disclosing this fact to his doctors, he subsequently received the wrong treatment and died two weeks later.