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Raphael’s Combining the Pagan Past with the Christian

Present in The School of Athens

By Jeniffer Harrison – Spring 2010

Raphael’s School of Athens (1510-1511), a fresco located in the Stanza della

Segnatura within the Vatican on the east wall, depicts a gathering of allegorical

figures of ancient philosophers and other intellectuals and innovators within an

architecturally Greco-Roman Classical structure.


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The frescos for the Stanza della Segnatura were commissioned by Julius’ II for his

papal library to portray the

four main parts of human knowledge: Philosophy in The School of Athens, Religion

in the Disputa, where theologians present their writings, Poetry in the Parnassus,

where writers group, and Jurisprudence where Prudence, Temperance, and

Fortitude sit below Justice. The School of Athens was the second fresco of four

Raphael began for the papal library. All the frescos possess numerous references to

the arts of the world hundreds of years prior to rendering the frescos including

science and mathematics, while being a distinctively Renaissance work of art.

(Rowland, 103) Further study of the work and its subjects exposes the complex

symbolism utilized by Raphael and reveals multiple levels of interpretation. The

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work contains many references, both obvious and slightly veiled, to philosophy,

religion, and architecture. Observation and analysis of The School of Athens provides

information on both the subjects of the painting and details of its setting, however of

specific interest of this paper is the investigation of the way Raphael seamlessly

blended Classical times with the Renaissance period art.

Examination

Upon examining The School of Athens, the viewer’s gaze is pulled toward the

center of the fresco where two figures stand symmetrically facing one another. The

two central figures are to be considered the most significant as the space directly in

between where their heads are placed at the focal point, which is also the vanishing

point for the perspective of the piece. This single-point perspective not only

illustrates their hierarchal importance, it also serves to be evidence for the

importance of the discipline of philosophy. As the figural portrayal of hierarchy in

Renaissance art is prevalent, this is the most obvious suggestion of their

significance; more subtle indications are additionally included to draw the viewers’

attention. The empty space below the primary figures, for example, widens out as

the viewers’ eyes move down the fresco creating an implied triangle created by the

figural arrangement which draws the viewer’s gaze up to the point of said triangle

and back toward the two figures. An archway, separating the figures within the

space from the surrounding figures, provides a frame for those same two figures.

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“The parallelism and complementarily of this central pair is echoed and deepened

by the figures who surround them in two rows in straight lines on their left and

right and who follow this central dialogue with passionate intensity and even

involuntary astonishment, thereby programming our own reaction (Most 157-

158).” The immediate surrounding figures also seem to be facing the two in the

middle, who are the only ones in that area facing the viewer. The two central

philosophers are the central figures; however are not the only focal point of the

piece. Other techniques are employed to steer the viewers of the painting to other

important details. The two groups of figures in the foreground, for example, also

form triangular shapes meant to lead the viewer upwards towards the larger

grouping of people in the painting’s middle area. The tiling pattern in the floor and

the depiction of arches in a hallway-like area, which diminishes into the

background, brings the viewer’s focus once again on the fresco’s central area.

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The arches create an

implied upside-down triangle, with the base being at the largest arch and with a

point that leads down towards the center.

Observations

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Observation of the subjects in the fresco leads to the analysis of their

importance. The first step, then, is the identification of the men Raphael has

portrayed. Since the time of Vasari’s Lives

of the Artists until today, debate on the

identity of the figures in the fresco

continues. Although there are many

theories and speculations, each with

compelling evidence, many figures are

generally agreed upon (Bell 639 – 646).

Two such figures are the main figures of

Plato and Aristotle. Each man gestures

with his right hand and holds a thick folio in

their left hand while looking at each other as if in conversation. This is the only

conversation in The School of Athens in which the “interlocutors speak and look only

at each other (Most 157-158)”. Janson identifies the two by the books they hold,

Plato with Timaeus and Aristotle with Ethics (Janson and Janson 475). Bellori also

notes the positioning of the two on the highest level of steps, which denotes their

hierarchy in the fresco. Plato’s hand gestures towards Heaven, which represents

Plato’s contemplation of the divine and Aristotle’s hand is extended as a symbol of

worldly matters (Bellori 50). The other figures of the piece are identified in similar

manners. Pythagoras is identified as the figure crouched with book in hand in the

left side of the foreground. Bellori identifies the book as Pythagoras’ writing on

harmonic proportions (Bellori 49-50). Glenn W. Most eloquently describes one of

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the groups in The School of Athens according to his ideas of identification of the

fresco’s members when he says,

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“O

n our left, the forward movement of the left circumambulating pair is prolonged into

one group of nine figures made up of six closely packed together (Socrates and his

listeners) and then three at some distance; on our right, the backward motion of the

right circumambulating pair is again followed by nine figures, one group of three

extending downward toward us onto the steps (Diogenes and two others) and six

others spaced out along the main floor to the right. The symmetrical disposition of

these two extensions of the central group is emphasized by the balance of two other

figures; near the extreme left on youth, his head turned away from us over his

shoulder, come running onto the scene just as at the extreme right another youth,

his head turned toward us over his shoulder, is hastily rushing off (Most 157-158).”

Glenn W. Most continues his descriptions of the remaining groups each of which is

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completely separate from the other. The second group of nine, which includes

Raphael, in the right foreground, is separated not only by location but also

additionally by their gestures and postures, which deliberately seclude them from

any other group, sealing their independence. This group appears to be involved in

the transmission and understanding of knowledge. The third and last group, like the

second are concerned only with what is occurring in their area. The group includes

Pythagoras writing on his tablet while other men crouch around

as if to access an unyielding secretiveness held

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by other members of the group. Unlike the other groups, the third is subdivided into

two subgroups. (Most 157-158)

New Identification of Fresco Figures

While the identities of most of the subjects of The School of Athens have been

agreed upon by scholars through the years, it is not uncommon for there to be

variances between different descriptions of the work. One major example is that of

the figures in the right foreground. Bellori identifies the mathematician leaning

over his work as Archimedes, and the two figures with globes on the far right as

astronomers Chaldeans and Zoroaster (Bellori 52-53). Janson challenges this

statement and argues that the figures in question are instead the mathematicians

Euclid and Ptolemy and the astronomer Hipparchus (Janson and Janson 476).

Moving on to the background figures, Janson and Bellori seem to agree on the

identity of the statues that rise above the crowd (Janson and Janson 476). The

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female statue is Minerva; goddess of wisdom and reason

dominates the right side of the fresco. She was born from her father, Jupiter’s, head

and her birth is considered to be a foreshadowing of the Virgin Mary giving birth to

Christ.

The male statue is Apollo;

god of health and music which dominates the left half of

the fresco. Apollo had many associations with sun, light, and healing as well. Many

of these same associations would become attributed to Christ. Apollo and Minerva

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appear to stand as reminders that in many ways these Greco-Roman gods were

predecessors to the figures of Christ and the Virgin Mary. (Rowland 105)

Another argument is over where Socrates is included in the fresco as he was

considered to be one of the greatest

philosophers other than Plato and Aristotle

and should have a significant location in the

fresco. One postulation by Daniel Bell is

that Bellori’s identification of Socrates

beside the military man off to the far left is

incorrect and that Socrates is in fact the man isolated on the steps at the feet of Plato

and Aristotle. He provides two key clues for the proposal that this figure is Socrates,

first Socrates was known to have often lacked a robe or worn a less than decent

robe and was often barefoot and second there is a cup lying to the left of the man on

the stairs possibly depicting the cup from which Socrates was forced to drink the

Hemlock which killed him. If Bell is correct this also explains the two figures to the

right of Socrates, which would have been his students Crito and Apollodorus who

were in a state of shock and disbelief at his deathbed. They are depicted in the

fresco making urgent gestures toward the man and pointing to Plato and Aristotle as

if to be imploring them for a reason for his death. (Bell 639 – 646) Beyond the

importance of scholars and students researching and debating the subjects in the

fresco to uncover the identities of the people portrayed is another important

consideration. As with other interpretations relating the pagan world with the

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Christian, Bell’s interpretation lends a new theory to the death of Socrates for

teaching Philosophy to the youth of Athens could be paralleled with Christ being

killed for teaching Christianity to the Hebrews. Since Raphael did not leave any

notes or letters regarding the fresco this matter may be debated for all time;

however, in light of the above information, it is plausible that this was an intended

foreshadowing effect by Raphael (Bell 639 – 646).

Structural References

In addition to the rich symbolism Raphael utilized regarding the figures in


The School of Athens, Raphael’s attention to architectural detail adds to the meaning
of the work and its attempt to combine the Renaissance with the Classical period.
The structure clearly references styles from Classical times, as evidenced by the
presence of columns and arches, which were pioneered by the Greeks and widely
utilized in Roman civilization. The structure itself shows that it is largely open to
the outside world, which was quite common in Greek and Roman buildings. Pierced
by three windows, the domed vault resembles Donato Bramante’s design of St.
Peter’s Basilica. The triple window echoes a sequence of the three sizeable openings
behind the dome bringing awareness to many subtle numerical elements Raphael
implemented into his design, much like the triad referring to the Holy Trinity
utilized in much of the Christian Church architecture. For Julius II, The School of
Athens was the
incarnation of a
Christian
Kingdom of Rome
under his rule
(Rowland 104).
As Lieberman

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points out that while Raphael may have drawn inspiration from St. Peter’s Basilica,
the building he portrays is not an exact representation of the church. One might
deduce then that Raphael took artistic liberties with the actual plans for St. Peter’s
Basilica in order to enhance them for transformation to his fresco. Worth noting
again are the details of the statues Raphael placed within his structure. While also
considered figures to be recognized, the statues of Minerva and Apollo also fall into
the category of architecture. Raphael’s use of the Classical gods within the depiction
of a Renaissance church successfully combines that which is pagan and Christian as
well as Classical ideas with Renaissance Humanism. (Janson and Janson 475-476)

Melding of Christianity and Pagan Images

The School of Athens represents at its core a melding of two worlds.

Religiously, the piece combines the pagan with the Christian in a way that

emphasizes the similarities of the two. The philosophers and scientists represent

the beauty of nature and the world that, combined with not only the artistic

representation of a place of worship, but also the piece’s existence within the

Vatican come to stand for a celebration of life and the divine. (Verdon 128-129)

While lacking the obvious Christian references of many other paintings in the

Vatican, Raphael still is able to emphasize religious themes with his subtle details

and ability to combine the thoughts and cultures of the Classical world with those of

the Renaissance world.

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Conclusion

While various interpretations of Raphael’s details persist today, it is clear

that the work succeeds in visually and culturally combining the two time periods of

the Renaissance and the Classical. The fresco’s style is clearly one of the

Renaissances and the methods used to depict perspective and the human form

confirms this. However, this, in addition to the depiction of traditionally Greek and

Roman subjects and a religiously Christian structure obviously influenced by

Classical architecture as well as subjects, both current and Classical, placed together

bridges the gap in time between the two time periods. The lack of any hint as to the

exact location where this scene might take place is due to the deliberate lack of any

outside landscape, with only sky and clouds showing we are thus provided a neutral

setting for the viewer to imagine this meeting of cultures. Overall, a detailed

observation of The School of Athens allows viewers to see a combination of two

types of worlds, religions, and thinkers the way thinkers of the Renaissance strived

to bring valued Classical ideals to society hundreds of years later.

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Raphael self portrait in the School of Athens

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