Raphael’s Stanzas in the Vatican Museum – history, photo, description, location, prices 2021, map
The four stanzas of Raphael are rooms of the Vatican Palace open to the public. They are best known for the amazing frescoes painted by Raphael and his talented students. Along with the ceiling frescoes by Michelangelo in the Sistine Chapel, they are the most outstanding works dating back to the Renaissance. Initially, the stanzas were the personal apartments of Pope Julius II, who did not want to occupy the same rooms that once belonged to representatives of the hated Borgia family.
Stanza della Senyatura
The most outstanding frescoes of Raphael are collected in the Stanza della Senyatura. All of them, except for the first Vatican work of the great artist, belong to the beginning of the Renaissance period. The name of the stanza literally translates as “signature room” – until the middle of the 16th century, the pontiff held meetings here and signed important documents. Initially, however, it was used by Julius II as a library and personal office, as eloquently narrated by frescoes painted between 1508 and 1511 They reflect the three greatest aspects of the human spirit: Truth, Goodness and Beauty.Supernatural Truth is illustrated in the “Disputation”, and Reasonable Truth – in the “School of Athens“.
Good is represented in Virtue and Law, and Beauty in Parnassus. The “School of Athens” rightfully considers one of the greatest works of Raphael. The artist depicted prominent philosophers (about fifty characters) on the canvas, placing Aristotle and Plato in the center: the first points down as a sign of connection with the earth, the second raises his hands to him.
On the most beautiful fresco “Parnassus”, Raphael painted Apollo playing the lyre, and nine muses with talented writers: Homer, Dante, Horace, Ovid, etc. During the reign of Leo X, the room was used as a study or music room, here he kept his musical instruments. The furnishings of the times of Julius II were replaced by Fra Giovanni da Verona. He covered all the walls with timber.
Stanza d'Eliodoro
This stanza was originally intended for private audiences of the Pope and was decorated immediately after Raphael finished his work on the Senyatura. The images of the frescoes are filled with one idea – faith in God's miraculous protection of the church. Four episodes of the Old Testament flaunt on the ceiling – all written by Raphael himself, while some works by Luca Signorelli, Bramantino, Lorenzo Lotto and Cesare da Sesto remain in the grotesques and arches. The fresco “The Expulsion of Eliodor” gave the station its name – it depicts a heavenly rider driving the Syrian Eliodor from the temple in Jerusalem.
In another work, “Mass in Bolsena,” an amazing miracle is shown – the hands of an unbelieving priest were stained with blood. Another fresco – “The Liberation of the Apostle Peter” – tells about the release of the apostle from prison. The work is divided into two parts: on the right, Peter escapes from the dungeon, led by an angel, on the left, the awakened guards raise the alarm. Art critics agree that the work on the light has been colossal. The refraction of rays and shadows, the flickering of the flame, the blinding darkness – it's hard to imagine what one person wrote this.
Stanza del Incendio di Borgo
During the time of Julius II, the stanza was used as a meeting place for the highest court of the Holy See, presided over by the Pope. This is evidenced by the frescoes on the ceiling, executed by Pietro Vannucci. During the time of Leo X, the room was used as a dining room, and Raphael was entrusted with painting the walls, who, however, entrusted most of the work to his students.
The painting of the frescoes took three years, from 1514 to 1517. The frescoes illustrate the political aspirations of Leo X through the narrative of the lives of two previous popes with the same name: Leo III (“Coronation of Charlemagne by Pope Leo III”) and Leo IV (“Fire in Borgo” ). In all episodes, the Pope is depicted with the face of the then ruling pontiff Leo X. It was thanks to the work “Fire in Borgo” that the stanza got its name, and the fresco itself reflects an ancient legend, according to which Pope Leo IV managed to tame the flame and protect the townspeople.
Stanza Constantine
A room decorated for receptions and other official events. After the sudden death of Raphael in 1520, it was completed by his students on the basis of sketches and previous works of the artist. The station was named after Constantine, the first Christian emperor, who officially recognized the Christian faith and granted the rest freedom of religion.
The wall paintings reflect four episodes from the life of the great ruler: evidence of the defeat of paganism and the triumph of the Christian religion, the battle with Maxentius, the tyrant-invader and the vision of Christ, the baptism of Constantine and the donation of Rome. The original wooden roof erected under Pope Leo X was replaced by a decree of Gregory XIII with modern ceilings. They were decorated by order of Pope Tomaso Laureti, depicting the victory of Christianity in the center. The work was completed at the end of 1585 under the direction of Pope Sixtus V.
Where is it located and how to get there
Raphael's rooms occupy four rooms of the Papal Palace in the very center of the Vatican. Exact address: 00120 Vatican City, Papal See, Apostolic Palace, Apostolic Palace.
Metro: Line A towards Battistini, Ottaviano and Cipro.
Buses: No. 49 – stops at the square opposite the Vatican Museum; No. 32, 81, 982 – stop Piazza del Risorgimento.