Between 1509 and 1510, Raphael Sanzio da Urbino created a fresco masterpiece designed for the Vatican entitled The School of Athens. The painting itself represents different branches of knowledge such as philosophy, theology but also literature. Most people consider the School of Athens to be a masterpiece of Raphael and the epitome of the High Renaissance. My thesis statement for this article is to ask and understand why Raphael painted such a beautiful object and I will also investigate why Michelangelo and Raphael were so beautiful. rivals at a time when I believe the Renaissance was reaching its peak in art, music and society as a whole. The background of The School of Athens falls into the center of the painting itself. It echoes the signs of perspective, composition and skillful drawing. What immediately jumps out at the viewer or viewer is the focus on Plato and Aristotle that immediately caught my attention. I recognized Aristotle right away because I am a big fan of his theories and insights since I took a philosophy class about three or four years ago at a community college....