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The Magnificence of Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel Ceiling

Season 2025 Episode 3 | 5m 25s

After four long years, Michelangelo finally unveils the completed Sistine Chapel ceiling. The Chapel's ceiling is roughly 600 square meters, nearly the size of three tennis courts; a monumental task that Michelangelo painted almost entirely by himself. While Pope Julius II is thrilled with the finished product, four years of backbreaking labor leaves Michelangelo broken and questioning his faith.

Latest Episodes
Michelangelo battles Raphael for Papal favor as violent religious schisms engulf Europe.
Fierce rivalry between Michelangelo and Leonardo is heightened by the arrival of Raphael.
Michelangelo and Leonardo struggle to win work in the brutal world of Renaissance Italy.
Extras
Michelangelo and Leonardo both return to Florence, where the stage is set for a fierce rivalry.
Michelangelo carves his David: a symbol of Florence’s strength and fortitude.
Leonardo travels to Milan, determined to make his name at the court of the Duke of Sforza.
Michelangelo carves his Pietà – a remarkable image of the Madonna holding her dead son.
How the greatest artworks of all time were born of an era of war, rivalry and bloodshed.
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