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Wikimedia Commons · Public domain · Hover to magnify, click for fullscreen
Original fileThis fresco is divided into two registers: the upper portion shows Christ flanked by angels and saints below a dove representing the Holy Spirit and a book with the Alpha and Omega. The lower register features a series of standing saints, including Jerome and Gregory the Great, flanking a central niche containing the Virgin and Child. The composition emphasizes a structured, harmonious divine order characteristic of the High Renaissance.
This work embodies the Neoplatonic 'Ladder of Being' and the synthesis of Christian theology with classical harmony, a central project of the Roman and Florentine academies. It reflects the intellectual influence of thinkers like Marsilio Ficino, who sought to reconcile the hierarchical structure of the cosmos with Christian revelation.
A Ω S MAURVS S PLACIDVS M S BENEDITVS S ROMVALDVS S BENEDICTVS M S IOHANNES S SCHOLASTICA S HIERONIMVS S IOANNES EV MATER GRATIAE S GREGORIVS MAGNVS S BONIFACIVS S MARTHA
Translation
Alpha and Omega (The Beginning and the End) Saint Maurus, Saint Placidus, Saint Benedict Saint Romuald, Saint Benedict, Saint John Saint Scholastica, Saint Jerome, Saint John the Evangelist Mother of Grace Saint Gregory the Great, Saint Boniface, Saint Martha
Marsilio Ficino
Raphael's harmonious and hierarchical compositions are the visual equivalent of Ficino's Neoplatonic theories on the cosmic order and the soul's ascent toward the divine.
Object
Oil on panel
religious
Digital Source
Wikimedia Commons · Public domain
www.aiwaz.net
1618 × 2000 px
Linked Data
AI AI-cataloged fields generated by gemini-3-flash-preview on April 2, 2026. Getty identifiers are AI-inferred and may require verification.