Raphael Rooms, Vatican, Sept. 2011 - Flickr - PhillipC (2)

This wide view of a corner in the Vatican's Raphael Rooms shows the sprawling, chaotic battle where Constantine the Great defeated Maxentius at the Tiber River. To the right, a monumental seated Pope is flanked by an allegorical figure of Justice standing in a painted architectural niche. The scene transition from the dynamic, crowded combat to the static, solemn figure of the Papacy reflects the late Renaissance style of Raphael's workshop.

The cycle represents the providential triumph of Christianity over pagan Rome, a theme central to the political theology of the Renaissance Papacy. It reflects the Neoplatonic project of reconciling classical history and imperial authority with the divine mandate of the Church.