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Wikimedia Commons · Public domain · Hover to magnify, click for fullscreen
Original fileStanza della Segnatura im Vatikan für Papst Julius II., Wandfresko: Verherrlichung (La disputa del sacramento) des Hl. Altarssakraments, Detail: Sekretär des Hl. Augustinus (rechts, neben dem Altar)
The youth is shown in a moment of intense concentration, holding a small inkwell and using a quill to transcribe words onto a long paper scroll. He wears a pale rose tunic with white drapery over his shoulder, his long wavy hair falling freely. This figure represents the human effort to record and preserve the divine wisdom being debated by the theologians around him.
As part of the Stanza della Segnatura, this work belongs to a decorative program meant to harmonize Christian theology with Neoplatonic philosophy. It illustrates the Renaissance ideal of the 'prisca theologia,' where the written transmission of knowledge by the Church Fathers is seen as a continuous link to ancient wisdom.
Saint Augustine
The figure is traditionally identified as the secretary or scribe transcribing the dictation and theological insights of Saint Augustine.
Object
Oil on panel
religious
Digital Source
Wikimedia Commons · Public domain
The Yorck Project (2002) 10.000 Meisterwerke der Malerei (DVD-ROM), distributed by DIRECTMEDIA Publishing GmbH. ISBN: 3936122202.
1000 × 1222 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.