Raphael's School of Athens

The School of Athens is a fresco by the Italian Renaissance artist Raphael. It was painted between 1509 and 1511 as part of Raphael's commission to decorate the rooms inside the Apostolic Palace in the Vatican. This iconic work depicts an imaginary gathering of the greatest philosophers, mathematicians, and scientists from classical antiquity.

The fresco is celebrated for its masterful composition, idealized figures, and profound exploration of human knowledge and reason. The central figures, Plato and Aristotle, represent opposing philosophical viewpoints, with Plato pointing upwards to the realm of ideas and Aristotle gesturing downwards to the empirical world.