# Michelangelo's Last Judgement Unveiled (31 October 1541)

URL: https://allhistories.com/vatican/timeline/1541-michelangelo-s-last-judgement-unveiled
Location: Sistine Chapel, Vatican
Themes: Key Events

Clement VII asked Michelangelo in 1533 to paint the altar wall of the Sistine Chapel, and Paul III confirmed the commission soon after his election in 1534. Rome was still recovering from the Sack of 1527, and the subject of the end of time and divine judgement reflected the sombre mood of a Church confronting the Reformation. Earlier frescoes by Perugino and two of Michelangelo's own lunettes were destroyed to make space. Michelangelo worked on the fresco from 1536 to 1541. It covers about 180 square metres and contains more than 300 figures, most of them nude, swirling around a muscular, beardless Christ who raises his hand in judgement beside the Virgin Mary. The saved rise towards heaven on the left while the damned are dragged down to hell on the right, ferried by Charon. Michelangelo depicted his critic, the papal master of ceremonies Biagio da Cesena, as Minos, judge of the underworld, and is thought to have painted his own face on the flayed skin held by St Bartholomew. Paul III presided at its unveiling on 31 October 1541. The fresco provoked controversy over its nudity, and after the Council of Trent's decree on sacred images, Daniele da Volterra was commissioned in 1565 to paint draperies over the genitals, earning him the nickname "Il Braghettone". It remains one of the most famous works of art in the world.

## Why it matters
The Last Judgement completed the decoration of the Sistine Chapel and became a focus of Counter-Reformation debate about sacred art.

Pope at the Time: [Pope Paul III](https://allhistories.com/vatican/popes/pope-paul-iii)

Cardinal-nephew (Superintendent of the Ecclesiastical State): Alessandro Farnese

## Sources
- [Wikipedia — The Last Judgment (Michelangelo)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Last_Judgment_(Michelangelo))
- [Vatican Museums](https://www.museivaticani.va/)
- [Catholic Encyclopedia (New Advent)](https://www.newadvent.org/cathen/)
- [Wikipedia — Counter-Reformation (period overview)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Counter-Reformation)