The Sistine Chapel ceiling, painted by Michelangelo between 1508 and 1512, is one of the most renowned artworks of the High Renaissance. Central to the ceiling decoration are nine scenes from the Book of Genesis of which The Creation of Adam is the best known, the hands of God and Adam being reproduced in countless imitations. The complex design includes several sets of individual figures, both clothed and nude, which allowed Michelangelo to fully demonstrate his skill in creating a huge variety of poses for the human figure, and have provided an enormously influential pattern book of models for other artists ever since.

Gallery

The ceiling. Not shown are the lunettes around the windows, also painted by Michelangelo; see plan below.

Plan of the pictorial elements of the ceiling showing the division of the narrative scenes into three themes

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.

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  The First Day of Creation, God divides light from Darkness. This was the final narrative to be painted.
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  Detail of the figure of God, which was painted by Michelangelo in a single day and may represent Michelangelo himself, painting the ceiling
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  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.
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  God separating the waters from the heavens. (Context)
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  Separating the waters (detail)
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  The Creation of Adam shows God giving life to the first man, while Eve, the first woman, watches from beneath his cloak.
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  Detail of God from The Creation of Adam
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  The Creation of Eve is based on a sculpture in Bologna.
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  The Downfall of Adam and Eve and their Expulsion from the Garden of Eden. Two episodes are combined in a single frame.
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  Drunkenness of Noah
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  Noah's Ark floats in the background while people struggle to escape the rising water of the Great Flood.
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  Detail from the scene of the Great Flood
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  The sacrifice of Noah after the Flood (in context, before restoration). This picture is thought by some to represent The sacrifices of Cain and Abel.
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  Sacrifice of Noah (post-restoration. Detail)

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).

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  Daniel
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  Joel
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  Zechariah
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  Jeremiah lamenting the fall of Jerusalem
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  Ezekiel hears the word of the Lord.
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  The prophet Isaiah
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  The prophet Jonah
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  The Cumaean Sibyl
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  The Erythraean Sibyl
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  The Persian Sibyl
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  The Delphic Sibyl
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  The Libyan Sibyl
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  Detail of the Delphic Sibyl

Pendentives

The four corner pendentives show violent episodes in which the People of Israel were rescued from enemies, or from their own sinful ways.

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  The Brazen serpent
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  Haman's punishment
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  David and Goliath
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  Judith and Holofernes

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.

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  Achim / Eliud
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  Aminadab
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  Asa / Jehosaphat / Joram
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  Azor / Sadoch
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  Eleazar / Mathan
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  Hezekiah / Manasseh / Amon
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  Jacob / Joseph
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  Jesse / David / Solomon
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  Josiah / Jechoniah / Sheatiel
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  Naason
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  Rehoboam / Abijah
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  Salmon / Boaz / Obed
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  Uzziah / Jotham / Ahaz
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  Zerubbabel / Abiud / Eliakim
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  Detail of the Achim lunette
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  Detail of the Asa, Jehosaphat and Joram lunette
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  Detail from the Eleazar lunette
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  Detail of the Ezechias lunette
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  Detail of the Salmon lunette

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. The composition of many of the pictures is similar to that found in depictions of the Holy Family resting on the Flight into Egypt.

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  In the Salmon spandrel a woman is making a garment while her child looks on.
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  In the Ozias spandrel a young child is attempting to breast feed from his exhausted-looking mother, who clasps a round loaf in her hand.
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  Jesse spandrel, before restoration
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  Jesse spandrel, after restoration. In this spandrel, a young woman who may represent the Virgin Mary gazes out with a prophetic expression. The details of her eyes were removed in the recent restoration.
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  The Ezechias spandrel shows a small child gazing out of the picture.

Ignudi

The Ignudi that surround the narrative scenes may show the perfection of Humanity, or may represent angels. They were often imitated by other artists.

• The Drunkenness of Noah group
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• The Sacrifice of Noah group
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  Above the Erithraean Sibyl
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  To the right of "Isaiah"
• The Creation of Eve group
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  Above the Cumean Sibyl
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• The Separating the Waters group
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  The great muscularity of the lower back of this figure suggests that he was a stonemason.
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• The First Day of Creation group
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  Above Jeremiah. This figure is one of the most reproduced on the ceiling.
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  Above Libyan Sibyl

Shields

The shields represent violent episodes in the history of Israel.

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  The Death of Uriah
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  Detail of The Idol of Baal