The Four Steps to the Sky

In 1497, the French ambassador to the Holy See commissioned Michelangelo to create the sculpture Pietà (or Translated Madonna Lamenting Christ, Pieta), which later became one of Michelangelo's most famous works.

The entrustment contract was signed in August of the following year.When the work was completed, Michelangelo was only 8 years old.The works were well received by the contemporaries.According to records, shortly after the completion of the sculpture, Michelangelo learned that there were rumors that the creator of the statue was Cristoforo Solari, and Michelangelo immediately engraved "Flo" on the shoulder strap of the Virgin's chest in the statue. by Michelangelo Buonarroti of Lens".

It is also the only signed work by Michelangelo.The work is preserved today in St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican.

In recent years, some researchers believe that Laocoon and Sons is not a work of ancient Rome, but a creation of Michelangelo during this period of time in Rome.

From 1499 to 1501, Michelangelo returned to Florence.The original spiritual and secular leader of Florence, Girolamo Savonarola, a monk who opposed the Renaissance, was burned at the stake in 1498. Piero Soderini gradually gained power, and the situation of the Florentine Republic turned for the better. [

The Wool Guild commissioned Michelangelo to create a colossal statue of David as a symbol of freedom in Florence, which was placed in Piazza della Signoria in front of Palazzo Vecchio after completion.

The guild provided marble that Agostino di Duccio had used 40 years earlier.

In 1504, Michelangelo completed the statue of David.This outstanding masterpiece highlights Michelangelo's extraordinary technique and outstanding imagination, and established his status as a sculptor.

In 1505, at the invitation of the new Pope Julius II, Michelangelo returned to Rome.Julius II commissioned him to design a mausoleum for the pope himself.Since the Pope continued to commission Michelangelo to create other works during this period, the design of the mausoleum was often interrupted.It took 40 years to complete.The mausoleum is located in the Church of St. Peter in Chains in Rome, with the statue of Moses in the center.

During the same period, Michelangelo was commissioned to paint the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, which took about 4 years (1508-1512).

According to Michelangelo's own account, it was Donato Bramante and Raphael who persuaded the Pope to commission Michelangelo to work on a medium he was not familiar with.

In this way, Michelangelo would pale in comparison to his rival, Raphael, the leading fresco painter at his peak.

However, contemporary art historians have dismissed this story based on the evidence now available, arguing that it was simply the artist's own opinion.

The fresco commissioned by the Pope features the Twelve Apostles on a starry sky background.But Michelangelo chose a more complicated solution.Based on Genesis in the Old Testament.

The work depicts 343 characters.The centerpiece is nine scenes from Genesis, from the creation of the world to the ark of the flood.The most famous of these are

As soon as the work was completed, some people thought that the frescoes were blasphemy, because Michelangelo painted both Christ and the Virgin Mary naked.

Cardinal Caraffa (later Pope Paul IV) and Mantua ambassador Monsigny Orcernini wanted the Pope to destroy the mural, but the Pope did not agree.

After Michelangelo's death, the Holy See decided to cover the private parts with a fig leaf for the painting.One of Michelangelo's apprentices, Daniele da Volterra, was commissioned to paint the underpants for the figures in the painting, for which he was dubbed the "pants painter".

In 1993, when the relics were restoring the murals, they decided to keep a part of the fig leaf painted by Daniele as a historical record.

On the other hand, some artists destroyed some of Michelangelo's original brushes in order to "polish" this masterpiece.The Capodimonte Museum in Naples has a copy of Marcello Venusti, which is faithful to the original, and the original murals have not been modified by later generations at the time of copying.

The same censorship has been accompanied by Michelangelo, who was once smeared as the "creator of obscenity" because the characters in his works often exposed their genitals.

Michelangelo's work was heavily vandalized by the infamous "fig leaf campaign", with a lot of fig leaf added.For example, the fig leaf of the statue of Christ of Minerva (Santa di Maria, a temple ruins in Rome) has survived to this day.

In 1546, the Holy See appointed Michelangelo as the architect of St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican.Michelangelo was to design the dome for the church.

During construction, there were concerns that Michelangelo would not be able to complete the dome in his lifetime due to his advanced age.However, after the lower supporting ring of the dome was built, the completion of the building was no longer an issue.

Michelangelo died in Rome in 1564 at the age of 88.It was just three weeks before his 89th birthday.According to his last wishes, the remains were transported from Rome to Florence and buried in the Basilica of Santa Croce in Florence.

The official newspaper of the Vatican, the Roman Observer, reported in 2007 that the Holy See found in an office in St. Peter's Basilica, which may be the last remains of the famous artist Michelangelo. It is estimated that it was built for the year before his death. A sketch made of St. Peter's Basilica.

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