Sistine Chapel

Sistine Chapel Sacellum Sixtinum (Latin) Cappella Sistina (Italian)
East side of the Chapel, from the altar end
Location on a map of Vatican City
Religion
Affiliation	Roman Catholic
Diocese	Diocese of Rome
Ecclesiastical or organisational status	Papal oratory
Leadership	Leo XIV
Year consecrated	15 August 1483
Location
Location	Vatican City
Coordinates	41°54′11″N 12°27′16″E
Architecture
Architects	Baccio Pontelli, Giovanni de Dolci
Type	Church
Groundbreaking	1505
Completed	1508
Specifications
Length	40.9 metres (134 ft)
Width (nave)	13.4 metres (44 ft)
Height (max)	20.7 metres (68 ft)
UNESCO World Heritage Site
Official name: Vatican City
Type	Cultural
Criteria	i, ii, iv, vi
Designated	1984
Reference no.	286
State Party	Holy See
Region	Europe and North America
Website
mv.vatican.va

Rome

840m
916yds

Sistine Chapel

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The Sistine Chapel (/ˈsɪstiːn/ SIST-een; Latin: Sacellum Sixtinum; Italian: Cappella Sistina [kapˈpɛlla siˈstiːna]) is a chapel in the Apostolic Palace, the pope's official residence in Vatican City. Originally known as the Cappella Magna ('Great Chapel'), it takes its name from Pope Sixtus IV, who had it built between 1473 and 1481. Since that time, it has served as a place of both religious and functionary papal activity. Today, it is the site of the papal conclave, the process by which a new pope is selected. The chapel's fame lies mainly in the frescoes that decorate its interior, most particularly the Sistine Chapel ceiling and The Last Judgment, both by Michelangelo.

During the reign of Sixtus IV, a team of Renaissance painters including Sandro Botticelli, Pietro Perugino, Pinturicchio, Domenico Ghirlandaio and Cosimo Rosselli, created a series of frescoes depicting the Life of Moses and the Life of Christ, offset by papal portraits above and trompe-l'œil drapery below. They were completed in 1482, and on 15 August 1483 Sixtus IV celebrated the first mass in the Sistine Chapel for the Feast of the Assumption, during which the chapel was consecrated and dedicated to the Virgin Mary.

Between 1508 and 1512, under the patronage of Pope Julius II, Michelangelo painted the chapel's ceiling, a project that changed the course of Western art and is regarded as one of the major artistic accomplishments of human civilization. In a different political climate, after the Sack of Rome, he returned and, between 1535 and 1541, painted The Last Judgment for popes Clement VII and Paul III. The fame of Michelangelo's paintings has drawn multitudes of visitors to the chapel since they were revealed five centuries ago.