The Cappella Paolina (the Pauline Chapel) is a chapel in the Apostolic Palace, Vatican City. It is separated from the Sistine Chapel by the Sala Regia. It is not on any of the regular tourist itineraries.
Michelangelo's two frescoes in the Cappella Paolina, The Conversion of Saul and The Crucifixion of St Peter were painted from 1542 to 1549, the height of his fame, but were widely viewed as disappointments and even failures by their contemporary audience. They did not conform to the compositional conventions of the time and the subject-matter is depicted in an unorthodox manner. Despite the importance of the chapel and the significance of their subjects, the frescoes were generally neglected and overlooked in favor of Michelangelo's nearby masterpieces in the Sistine Chapel.[1]
An Italian scholar has recognised Michelangelo's face both in the Saint Paul and Saint Peter paintings by facial superimposition.[2][3]
- ^ Leo Steinberg, Michelangelo's Last Paintings: The Conversion of St Paul and the Crucifixion of St. Peter in the Cappella Paolina, Vatican Palace (New York: Oxford University Press, 1975), 17.
- ^ Sandro Giometti "Michelangelo, Displaying the Invisible" TAU pub.er Todi 2018
- ^ 'Michelangelo self-portrait' discovered in restored Vatican fresco, The Times, 2 July 2009.