Gallery of Sistine Chapel ceiling
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The Sistine Chapel ceiling, painted by Michelangelo between 1508 and 1512, is one of the most renowned artworks of the High Renaissance. The ceiling is that of the large Sistine Chapel built within the Vatican by Pope Sixtus IV, begun in 1477 and finished by 1480. The paintings on the ceiling represent Biblical stories about the Creation, Downfall and Salvation of Humankind. This gallery illustrates the main article at Sistine Chapel ceiling.
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[edit] Gallery
 The left half of the entire ceiling, after restoration |
 The right half of the entire ceiling, after restoration |
[edit] Biblical Narratives
Along the centre of the ceiling are nine scenes depicting the Story of Creation, the Downfall of Humanity and the Story of Noah as told in the Book of Genesis.
 The First Day of Creation, God divides light from Darkness. This was the final narrative to be painted. |
 Detail of the figure of God, which was painted by Michelangelo in a single day and may represent Michelangelo himself, painting the ceiling. |
 To the left, God creates the Earth and, to the right, God creates the Sun to light the day and the Moon to light the night. |
 God separating the waters from the heavens. |
 The Creation of Adam, one of the most famous of all paintings, shows God giving life to the first man, while Eve, the first woman, watches from beneath his cloak. |
 The iconic image of the Hand of God giving life to Adam. |
 The Creation of Eve is based on a sculpture in Bologna. |
 The Downfall of Adam and Eve and their Expulsion from the Garden of Eden. Two episodes are combined in a single frame. |
 Noah's Ark floats in the background while people struggle to escape the rising water of the Great Flood. |
 Detail from the scene of the Great Flood. |
 The sacrifice of Noah after the Flood. This picture is thought by some to represent The sacrifices of Cain and Abel. |
[edit] Prophets and Sibyls
The Prophets of Israel and the Sibyls of the pagan world foretold the coming of the Messiah. Both have been included by Michelangelo as a sign that the Messiah (Jesus Christ) was to come not just for the Jews but also for the Gentiles (non-Jewish people).
 Jeremiah lamenting the fall of Jerusalem. |
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 Ezekiel hears the word of the Lord. |
 The prophet Isaiah |
 The prophet Jonah |
 The Cumaean Sibyl |
 The Erythraean Sibyl |
 The Persian Sibyl |
 The Delphic Sibyl |
 The Libyan Sibyl |
[edit] Pendentives
The four corner pendentives show violent episodes in which the People of Israel were rescued from enemies, or from their own sinful ways.
 Haman's punishment |
[edit] Ancestors
The ancestors of Jesus are listed in the Biblical books of Matthew and Luke. This is the first known large painted series, although they were often shown in stained glass. See Tree of Jesse. Although each picture has a title, the characters cannot be positively identified.
 The family of Jacob and Joseph. |
 The family of Zorobabel. |
 The family of Achim. |
 Figure from the Salmon lunette. |
 Figure from the Ezechias lunette. |
 Figure from the Achim lunette. |
[edit] Spandrels
Above the windows are a series of families with young children. The children may represent particular children who are mentioned in the Bible, such as Isaac and Samuel,
 In the Salmon spandrel a woman is making a garment while her child looks on. |
 The Ozias spandrel. |
 The Jesse spandrel. |
 The Ezechias spandrel. |
[edit] Ignudi
The ignudi which surround the narrative scenes may show the perfection of Humanity, or may represent angels. They were often imitated by other artists.
 This figure is one of the most reproduced on the ceiling. |
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[edit] Shields
The shields represent violent episodes in the history of Israel.
 The Death of Uriah |
 Detail of The Idol of Baal |
[edit] References
- Massimo Giacometti , The Sistine Chapel, a collection of essays on aspects of the chapel, its decoration and the restoration of Michelangelo's frescoes, by Carlo Pietrangeli, André Chastel, John Shearman, John O'Malley S.J., Pierluigi de Vecchi, Michael Hirst, Fabrizio Mancinelli, Gianluigi Colallucci, and Franco Bernabei. 1984, Harmony Books ISBN 0-517-56274-X
- Gabriele Bartz and Eberhard König, Michelangelo, 1998, Könemann, ISBN 3-8290-0253-X
[edit] External links
