Governorate of Vatican City State / Vatican Museums
Extraordinary maintenance of
MICHELANGELO’S UNIVERSAL JUDGEMENT
Saturday 28 February 2026 – 7.45 – Press Point in the Sistine Chapel,
PRESS RELEASE
Vatican City, Monday 23 February – the installation of the scaffolding in the Sistine Chapel has been completed and the extraordinary maintenance of the Universal Judgement has commenced.
“The cleaning of Michelangelo’s magnificent fresco has begun”, declares Barbara Jatta, Director of the Vatican Museums. “Until the work is completed, which is expected to be by Holy Week, the Sistine Chapel will continue to welcome worshippers and visitors, while restorers from the Vatican Museums’ Paintings and Wooden Materials Restoration Laboratory will work on the large scaffolding, screened by a cloth reproducing the image of the Judgement. The installation of the scaffolding was made possible thanks to the cooperation of the Directorate of Infrastructure and Services (led by Engineer Salvatore Farina) of the Governorate of Vatican City State. The cleaning of the fresco is supported by the Florida Chapter of the Patrons of the Arts in the Vatican Museums. We are grateful to Mary Viator and the entire Chapter for their generous support”.
“All the phases of process will be documented by the Vatican Museums Photographic Laboratory, creating a valuable record of the cleaning that, by removing a slight patina, invisible to the naked eye, will restore Michelangelo’s colours to their former splendour. Around thirty years since the last conservation work, completed in 1994 under the supervision of Director General Carlo Pietrangeli and carried out by Gianluigi Colalucci, Chief Restorer of the Vatican Museums’ Painting and Wood Materials Restoration Laboratory, it will be possible to admire Michelangelo’s supreme masterpiece in all the power of his vision”.
“Commissioned in 1533 by Pope Clement VII Medici”, explains Fabrizio Biferali, curator of the Department of 15th-16th Century Art, “the fresco depicting the Universal Judgement was begun in 1536 under Pope Paul III Farnese and completed in 1541. According to a passage from Ascanio Condivi’s Life of Michelangelo Buonarroti (1553), Clement VII already had in mind the subject to entrust to the great Tuscan master: ‘The Day of Judgement, considering the variety and grandeur of the subject, he felt he should give this man the opportunity to prove his strength’. His successor, Paul III, was so eager to admire Buonarroti’s masterpiece that, in order to allow him to devote himself solely to it, on 17 November 1536 he released him from his contractual obligations for the tomb of Julius II, while an annual salary of 1,200 ducats was guaranteed to the artist until his death. When the fresco was finally unveiled, it was said that Paul III was so impressed that he fell to his knees and begged for divine forgiveness on his last day”.
“The current intervention on the wall of Michelangelo’s Universal Judgement”, explains Paolo Violini, chief restorer of the Painting and Wood Materials Restoration Laboratory, “was made necessary due to the presence of a widespread whitish patina on the painted surface, which caused a reduction in the levels of chiaroscuro and a consequent alteration of the fresco’s chromatic legibility. The removal of this patina is carried out by carefully applying deionized water with a brush, interposed between two layers of Japanese paper. The water allows the complete solubilisation of deposits and foreign substances, bringing the original paint film back to light while respecting its authentic state of preservation. The intervention is preceded by accurate preliminary scientific investigations, detailed photographic documentation and a precise survey of the state of conservation of the work, aimed at acquiring data and verifying the compatibility of the operating procedures adopted”.
“A Sistine Chapel open to all, in the best possible condition for visitors”, comments Marco Maggi, Head of the Conservator’s Office. “A daily commitment to today’s visitors and a right to be passed on unchanged to future generations. In this spirit, in 2010, the Directorate of the Vatican Museums launched the Sistine Chapel Ordinary Maintenance Plan: coordinated by the Office of the Conservator, for 15 years, on evenings in January and February, after the Museums close to the public, paint and marble restorers, diagnostics and conservation experts, logistics operators, Museum technicians and the Infrastructure and Services Department take turns to ensure the preservation of the Chapel’s frescoes and decorative elements through thorough dust removal and rigorous autoptic and instrumental checks, and to verify the correct functioning of the air conditioning and lighting systems, which have been in operation since 2014 and are essential for maintaining stable conditions and ensuring optimal enjoyment of the environment of the Sistine Chapel”.
In 2024, the same spirit of care - which has its roots in a Vatican tradition dating back to 1543, during the papacy of Paul III, and specifically to the establishment of the role of the mundator (a figure responsible for periodic dusting to preserve the decorations of the Sistine Chapel) - led the Museums Directorate to take a systematic approach, within the framework of maintenance plans, to the survey of the Universal Judgement, thirty years after the completion of its restoration. This made it possible to detect the presence of a white veil of exogenous substance, capable of altering the perception of colour relationships over time. Today, after a year and a half of studies and analyses, the installation of special scaffolding close to the wall of the Universal Judgement will allow our restorers to carry out, in complete safety and with the Sistine Chapel open, extraordinary maintenance work on the entire painted surface.
The white patina will be removed, “lifted”, and further valuable information will be obtained to understand its origin and counteract the mechanisms of its formation in the future. Above all, it will be possible to appreciate once again the richness of Michelangelo’s colours. In this case too, the final result will be the fruit of a comprehensive approach and the joint work of various professionals who express their commitment to serving the Holy See on a daily basis to ensure the conservation of the works with a view to continually improving knowledge, communication and sharing.
“Around thirty years after the last restoration of the Universal Judgement”, adds Fabio Morresi, head of the Cabinet of Scientific Research, “we are once again able to touch and observe Michelangelo’s work up close. Over the years, the paint film has been constantly monitored and we have observed, in addition to a slight deposition of particulate matter, some localized whitening phenomena. These phenomena were immediately analysed to determine their exact nature and, therefore, the cause of their appearance. A series of in-depth scientific analyses allowed for the correct molecular definition of this substance, namely calcium lactate. This salt is stratified only on the outermost surface of the painting and is highly soluble in water. This chemical-physical characteristic allows for easy removal, guaranteeing the minimum interaction with the underlying pigments. The Vatican Museums Cabinet of Scientific Research will constantly monitor the maintenance operations and carry out a series of complex chemical and physical measures to support all the restorers’ operations. This data will then be useful for monitoring the state of health of the work over time”.
The extraordinary maintenance work is supported by the Florida Chapter of the Patrons of the Arts in the Vatican Museums.
ACCREDITATION AND PARTICIPATION PROCEDURES
Journalists and media operators who wish to attend the Press Point on Saturday 28 February at 7.45 must apply exclusively via the Holy See Press Office online accreditation system, at: press.vatican.va/accreditamenti
All applications must be received by Wednesday 25 at 12.00; in the event of a large number of requests, priority will be given.
Photography and video recording will only be permitted from the floor of the Sistine Chapel. Access to the scaffolding will be permitted at a later stage; during this phase, it will not be possible to take photographs or make video recordings in any way, even with mobile devices. Official images will be made available to the press by the Vatican Museums.
Access from Viale Vaticano (exit side) at 7:20. Punctuality is strongly recommended.
Contacts
Vatican Museums Press Office: stampa.musei@scv.va
