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Wikimedia Commons · CC0 · Hover to magnify, click for fullscreen
Original fileSaint Paul stands on a stone platform with both arms raised, addressing a crowd of Greek men and women. The listeners are gathered in various states of contemplation and debate, set against a backdrop of classical architecture that includes a circular temple and a statue of a warrior. In the foreground, a man and woman kneel in a gesture of conversion, representing the start of a new spiritual tradition within the ancient city.
This scene depicts the conversion of Dionysius the Areopagite, the figure to whom the 'Corpus Areopagiticum' was later attributed. These texts were central to the development of Christian Neoplatonism and were heavily studied and translated by Renaissance humanists like Marsilio Ficino to bridge the gap between Greek philosophy and mystical theology.
Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite
The artwork depicts the conversion of Dionysius, the namesake of the foundational Neoplatonic 'Corpus Areopagiticum'.
Marsilio Ficino
Ficino viewed the event at the Areopagus as a pivotal moment in the lineage of the 'prisca theologia' (ancient theology).
Object
Oil on panel
religious
Digital Source
Wikimedia Commons · CC0
http://hdl.handle.net/10934/RM0001.COLLECT.615607
3936 × 2884 px
Linked Data
AI AI-cataloged fields generated by gemini-3-flash-preview on April 1, 2026. Getty identifiers are AI-inferred and may require verification.