The School of Athens by Raphael (Vatican)

At the center of the composition, Plato and Aristotle walk together, gesturing respectively toward the heavens and the earth to represent their differing philosophical focuses. Around them, various groups of thinkers including Pythagoras, Socrates, and Euclid are engaged in debate, calculation, and study across a grand staircase. The scene is framed by classical statues of Apollo and Minerva, representing the divine sources of inspiration and wisdom.

The work illustrates the Renaissance concept of 'prisca theologia,' the idea that a single thread of divine truth was shared by the great ancient thinkers. It visualizes the intellectual synthesis of Neoplatonism, aiming to harmonize the transcendent ideals of Plato with the empirical observations of Aristotle.