18. The Pieta by Michelangelo, a work of the High Renaissance, was criticized by his detractors who thought the Virgin appeared too young. Michelangelo explained that she was so young because her purity kept her from aging. He had made a girl’s face intentionally. Neither does Michelangelo depict Christ in the manner which one might expect of one recently crucified in The Pieta, but relatively unscathed by the ordeal of his traumatic manner of death. The Pieta by Michelangelo shows a Virgin, whose calm, serene dignity in life is echoed by the same qualities in the face of Christ, intended to elicit empathy from the viewer.
19. The Pieta is carved from white marble and stands 6 feet 5/8; inches high. Look at he difference in scale between the Virgin and the Christ lying across her knees. See how wide the Virgin’s shoulders are. Compare her hands with those of Jesus. What about that huge pillar (the Virgin’s leg) that supports the “little” Jesus? Proportionally Mary would be 8 feet tall in real life. Michelangelo begun with his fascination for the cross design—the Virgin vertical, Christ horizontal. The Virgin’s narrow body did not have enough mass, even with all the drapery, to fill out the areas left and right of Christ’s body if it was going to lie completely lengthwise in her lap. He had to widen her body and hide its gigantic size as he could. And to reduce in scale the body of Jesus, which is perfect according to its own laws but much too small–doll-like—by comparison with the Virgin’s.
20. The Pieta is the only work signed by Michelangelo. The Pieta is signed by the artist on a sash across the chest of the Virgin. Michelangelo is reported to have overheard a discussion by Vatican visitors crediting The Pieta to the hand of another artist. After dark, he secretly entered the Vatican and carved his signature into the Virgin's sash with the words: ”Michaelangelus Bonarotus Florentinus Faciebat" or "This was made by Florentine Michelangelo Buonarroti."
23. In 1972, the “Pietà” was attacked by a hammer-wielding, Hungarian-born geologist. The 33-year-old Laszlo Toth yelled, “I am Jesus Christ!” as he attacked the famous sculpture. As a result, the sculpture is now protected by bullet-proof glass, after undergoing repairs. However, the attack may actually have been beneficial in a way, as the restorers discovered what appears to be a secret monogram: an “M” in the skin lines on the palm of Mary’s left hand.
26. Michelangelo was also an architect and designed this building, called the Campidoglio, which was the seat of the civic government in Rome. He helped design the most impressive building in Rome, too!
![Michelangelo Early Life ,[object Object],[object Object],[object Object],[object Object]](data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7)