Angels, study for the 'Disputa'; one with hands together at l, 1895,0915.621

The drawings explore the anatomy and movement of celestial beings, with one figure pressing hands together in prayer while others twist through the air with broad wings. The artist uses soft hatching to define the musculature and the graceful, weightless quality of the figures. These studies were created to determine the poses of the angels inhabiting the upper celestial tier of the Vatican fresco.

This work is a fundamental component of the Stanza della Segnatura project, which sought to harmonize the realms of Revelation (the Disputa) and Reason (the School of Athens). The angelic figures represent the celestial hierarchy, a concept central to Neoplatonic Christian thought as articulated by thinkers like Dionysius the Areopagite.