The Vatican Museums are among the world's most famous theological museums. Located in Vatican City, the museums were created in the early 16th century by Pope Julius II, known as the Warrior Pope, and subsequently developed and expanded. Today, the museums house about 70,000 works and are some of the most visited art museums in the world.
Pope Julius II began building the Vatican Museums after collecting a group of sculptures and placing them in what is now known as the Octagonal Court or Cortile Ottagono. The collected works of Pope Julius II include the sculptures of Laocoon and His Sons, Apollo Belvedere, The Sleeping Ariadne, and Venus Felix. Lacoon and his Sons, the first work purchased, was discovered in a vineyard in Rome in 1506. The sculpture was purchased on the recommendation of Michelangelo and Giuliano da Sangallo and put on display a month after its discovery.
Pope Julius II subsequently foresaw the construction of new buildings and the addition of galleries and passageways to link them with the existing buildings. Over the past five centuries, popes have added new structures and museums. The Vatican Museums now comprise 26 museums and several galleries. Artworks range from Egyptian antiquities to Greek, Roman, early Christian, medieval, and contemporary art.
One of the most famous Vatican Museums, and perhaps its main attraction, is the Sistine Chapel, named after its founder, Pope Sixtus IV Francesco della Rovere. The museum is known for the famous works of Michelangelo - The Ceiling Frescoes and the Giudizio Universale, also known as "The Last Judgment." Construction of the Sistine Chapel began in 1475 and took about eight years to complete. It was built in place of the Cappella Magna, an assembly hall used by the Papal Court. Although the chapel's walls were decorated shortly after its completion, the ceiling was painted in 1506 in a program initiated by Pope Julius II.
The frescoes on the chapel walls were painted by renowned Renaissance painters such as Luca Signorelli, Sandro Botticelli, Domenico Ghirlandaio, and Pietro Perugino. The frescoes depict events from the life of Jesus. The vault and the wall on the altar took Michelangelo nearly a decade to paint. The ceiling art spans 8,611 square feet and portrays biblical stories and characters, particularly from the book of Genesis. The most famous is The Creation of Adam. On the wall behind the altar is Michelangelo's painting of The Last Judgment, comprising over 300 figures depicting the second coming of Christ and the final judgment.
Another highlight of the museum is the Stanze di Raffaello or the Raphael Rooms. Located in the Vatican Palace, the four rooms comprise the Room of the Fire in the Borgo, the Room of Constantine, the Room of Segnatura, and the Room of Heliodorus. The Stanze di Raffaello was part of the private apartment of Pope Julius II and some of his successors. The rooms were named after Raphael Santi, who painted the Room of Segnatura and the Room of Heliodorus. The paintings depict themes from theology to poetry, law, and philosophy.
Other famous museums in the Vatican are the Pio-Clementine, the Gallery of Maps, and the Gregorian Egyptian Museum. The Vatican Museums employ hundreds of people and receive millions of visitors each year. The museums are funded primarily through ticket sales and donations.
