The Sistine Chapel

100 Places To See Before You Die:

The Sistine Chapel

The Sistine Chapel not only contains Michelangelo's famous ceiling fresco, it also functions as the site where a new Pope is selected, making it both an artistic and a religious wonder.  

The chapel was built between 1473 and 1484 at the behest of Pope Sixtus IV after whom it is named.  It forms part of the Papal Palace - the official residence of the Pope in Vatican City - and was designed to match the dimensions of the Temple of Solomon.  What it is most renowned for, of course, are the Renaissance paintings created by Michelangelo on the 63-foot high ceiling between 1508 and 1512.  This series of paintings depicts nine scenes from the Book of Genesis, including the most famous, God creating Adam, which shows the hand of God giving life to Adam.

Michelangelo painted using the Fresco method, which is basically applying paint to damp plaster.  Nearly 20 years after painting the ceiling, he painted "The Last Judgement" behind the chapel altar.  These are among the most treasured frescoes in the world.  There are other works in the chapel as well including Botticelli's "Temptation of Christ" and Perugino's "Christ Giving the Keys to St. Peter". 

I could give you lots of historical info, but you can simply Wikipedia that and learn a lot more than I could relay here.  I'll mention a couple of facts that I find interesting though.  Michelangelo didn't want to do the painting at all.  He was a sculptor primarily and had little interest in leaving Florence for this job.  Pope Julius II, the "Warrior Pope", wouldn't take no for an answer though.  Once committed, Michelangelo designed his own scaffolding system that also caught any plaster that would drip.  And, contrary to some belief, he didn't paint the ceiling lying down.  He stood and painted looking straight up.

My attempt at sneaking a picture without a flash - and without being yelled at.

"The Last Judgement" is my favorite piece in the chapel if for no other reason than Michelangelo painting the faces of some critics of the work, such as the Pope's own Master of Ceremonies Biagio da Cesena, in a less than flattering manner.  Cesena had claimed that all the nudity was "disgraceful in such a sacred place".  For his comments, Michelangelo used his donkey-eared likeness to represent Minos at the gates of Hell.  When Cesena complained, the Pope said his jurisdiction "did not extend to Hell", and the painting remained.  After Michelangelo's death in 1564, an artist was tasked with covering all genitalia with cloths.

On a side note, when you visit the Vatican Museum, it's interesting to note that the "nudity" issue has taken many turns over the years.  At one point almost all sculptures included genitalia, but at different times and through different Popes, odd things have been done.  At some point, all of the male "bits" were removed and small fig leaves were placed where they used to be.  There is a restoration process currently ongoing to return all of the "bits" to their rightful places.  One of our guides once said "if you can imagine it, they just have this one room full of male genitalia and they're spending years trying to figure out where it all goes".        

Visiting the chapel means heading to Vatican City, the smallest country in the world.  Vatican City, of course, is right smack dab in the middle of Rome, so there's no shortage of things to see and do in the area.  A trip to the Vatican can take at least a full day, and you won't even come close to seeing everything.  The Vatican Museum has almost certainly the greatest collection of art in the world.  National Geographic said that if you looked at every piece of art here for 20 seconds without stopping, it would take you over 13 years to see everything.  I believe them.

Everybody who visits the Vatican views the Sistine Chapel, but don't miss St. Peter's Basilica (which also has it's own spot on the "100 Places To See Before You Die" list).  The biggest problem is the crowds.  Branelle and I have been to the Vatican twice in the last few years and both times it was a nightmare.  On our most recent visit it was so crowded in the Chapel that you legitimately couldn't move without shoving someone to make a path.  You aren't really supposed to talk or take pictures, but everybody does.  The guards will just tell everyone to stop every few minutes.  My friend Andrew took a night tour and said they had the place nearly to themselves.  It wasn't offered when we've been there, but I would think it would be worth the money if you get the opportunity.