The Sistine Chapel

The Sistine Chapel is an extraordinary work of education – it lays out all the early books of the Bible.”

—Peter Greenaway

The Sistine Chapel was built in the 15th century and accommodates famous artworks such as Michelangelo’s ceiling frescoes and ‘The Last Judgment’. It is also where the papal conclave meets to elect a new Pope after the death or resignation of a Pope. It can have 20,000 to 30,000 visitors a day.

The Ceiling of the Sistine Chapel

Michelangelo’s ceiling was commissioned by Pope Julius II and painted between 1508 and 1512, for a fee of 3000 ducats (around €1.5 to €2 million of today’s money). The paintings were based on the stories in the book of Genesis. The focus being, “The Ignudi”, rounded by twenty athletic nude male models. Part of the ceiling shows God bringing Adam to life.

I had the privilege of viewing this masterpiece by Michelangelo. What you see in pictures comes nowhere near the magnificent look and feel of the Sistine Chapel when one is present inside.

The Last Judgment

‘The Last Judgment’ (Giudizio Universale’) is Michelangelo’s second masterpiece painted on the front wall of the chapel from 1538 to 1541. Here, he was depicting Christ’s second coming and the final and eternal judgment by God of all humanity. This masterpiece depicts Christ surrounded by prominent saints including Peter, Lawrence, Bartholomew, Paul, Sebastian, John the Baptist, and others.

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Critics Pressured Michelangelo

Michelangelo was strongly criticized for his work. As payback, he painted one of his loudest critics, Biagio de Cesena, as a judge of the underworld with donkey ears and a snake wrapped around him eating his private parts. Also, the naked multitude of people he painted on the wall of the Sistine Chapel was directed to hell.

As our tour guide explained further about Michelangelo’s payback stunts, it quickly dawned on me that his work was not exclusively about religious facts, but mixed with vengeful attitude and settling of a score.

The man was on a mission to humiliate his critics. I wonder how the chapel over the years has managed to maintain its divine portrait (after all, it is where the new Pope is elected after the death or resignation of a Pope).

However, to be fair to Michelangelo, he managed to portray biblical facts on the sidewalls with less criticism. For example, the Journey of Moses in Egypt is painted on the left wall; while on the right wall, the ministry of Christ is painted.

Overall, the message Michelangelo aimed to put across proved too strong for some. As the outcry grew louder, one of Michelangelo’s students, Daniel da Voiterra, was commissioned to repaint the Last Judgment in 1565, removing the nakedness in the picture. Since then, the period between 1980 and 1994 also saw significant restoration work to the Sistine Chapel.

3D Virtual Tour

You don’t have to wait to visit Rome in order to experience the splendor and wonder of the Sistine Chapel. The Vatican operates a 3D virtual tour of the chapel on their website (link below).

Through this tour, you can experience so much of the chapel, from the ceiling to the fine décor, and so forth. Of course, the virtual tour as good as it is, it is nowhere near as good as the actual real-life experience.

Useful Information

Entrance tickets/tours

Before you plan your visit please be aware that ticket queues at the Vatican museums and St Peters Basilica are very long. I cannot stress enough how important and efficient it is to purchase online.

A full ticket to visit Vatican museums and the Sistine chapel costs €16 without a tour guide. For a group tour, you will pay €32 (price includes rental headsets). Duration of the tour is approximately 2 hours.

Entrance to St Peter’s Basilica is free but if you go with the tour guide you will pay €37 for entrance to Vatican museums, the Sistine Chapel and St Peters Basilica. It will take approximately 3 hours to finish the tour.

It is possible to use other companies that provide guided tours. You will pay a little more than the prices stated above. Just be very careful when buying from vendors outside the museums or around St Peters Square, in case they are not genuine sellers.

When I visited Vatican City I bought a ticket from a vendor at St Peters Square. I made sure she took me to where the group was waiting. We did not pay the money upfront but waited until we arrived at their office just a street away from the museum’s entrance.

By that time we had experienced how our tour guide was operating; we were given a choice to pay and proceed with the tour or leave the group if not satisfied with the presentation.

The Vatican museums official website lists recommended guided tours. For more information Click here.

Night Private Tours

Since 2007, individuals are allowed to get exclusive private access to the Sistine Chapel at night after it is closed. Before 2007 only politicians, celebrities, and other dignitaries were allowed. You have a choice to visit hidden museums in addition to the Vatican museums (which include the Sistine Chapel).

Prices vary depending on how many hidden museums you are adding to your itinerary. For just under €500 you are guaranteed a hustle free entrance. To organize an out of hours tour e-mail: visitespeciali.musei@scv.va

Getting There

Address: Viale Vaticano, 00165, Rome

Trains/Metro Line A: Ottaviano – S.Pietro-Musei Vaticani; Cipro (10 minutes’ walk from both stations).

Bus: Bus 49 stop in front of the Museums Entrance. Buses 32, 81, 982 stop at Piazza del Risorgimento, end of the line (5 minutes’ walk). Buses 492, 990 stop at Via Leone IV / Via degli Scipioni (5 minutes’ walk).

Tram: 19, Piazza del Risorgimento (5 minutes’ walk)

Taxi Station: Viale Vaticano (in front of the Museums entrance)

Sightseeing tour buses will also take you to Vatican City. I used the Rome Open Tour Hop-on-Hop-off bus. It comes every 20 minutes and the average ticket price for 24 hours costs €20.

Dress Code

Vatican museums, including the Sistine Chapel, will only permit visitors who dress appropriately. Sleeveless blouses, miniskirts, shorts, and hats are not allowed.

For more information visit the Vatican museums website.

Despite the drama that followed Michelangelo when he painted the ceiling and the walls of the Sistine Chapel, the delightful ambiance that welcomes you is worth the long journey to Rome.

On the completion of the Sistine Chapel ceiling: “I’ve finished that chapel I was painting. The Pope is quite satisfied.”

—Michelangelo