“This is one of the most valuable works of art owned by Poland,” Wojciech Fałkowski, the director of the Royal Castle, told the Polish Press Agency (PAP) after the presentation of the recently acquired drawing on Monday.

“This is also a very important moment for Polish culture,” Falkowski said, adding that the drawing would undoubtedly elevate the significance of Poland’s art collection worldwide.

Referring to the loss of Raphael’s only painting in Poland, the “Portrait of a Young Man,” which was looted from the Czartoryski Collection during WWII, Falkowski mentioned that the drawing was acquired to become part of a collection of Italian art now being established at the Royal Castle.

The drawing of a soldier in all’antica armor, dating from between 1506 and 1510, will be presented at an exhibition titled “Raphael: The Beauty of the Renaissance,” alongside other works by the artist from Italian museums at the Royal Castle in Warsaw in October.

According to estimates, Poland lost over half a million works of art during World War Two. Over 60,000 of them have been identified and included in the Register of Looted Art of the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage. Poland has been gathering data on looted and lost artwork since the early 1990s.