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the high point of Western artistic achievement, these two works completely outshine the
chapel's wall paintings, themselves masterpieces of 15th-century fresco art painted by Pi-
etro Vannucci (Perugino; 1446−1523), Sandro Botticelli (1445−1510), Domenico Ghir-
landaio (1449−94), Cosimo Rosselli (1439−1507), Luca Signorelli (c 1445−1523) and
Bernadino di Betto (Pinturicchio; 1454−1513).
Michelangelo and Raphael didn't get on. Despite this, Raphael felt compelled to honour his elder after
sneaking into the Sistine Chapel to look at Michelangelo's half-finished ceiling frescoes. He was so im-
pressed with what he saw that he painted Michelangelo into his masterpiece
La Scuola di Atene
.
Michelangelo Buanarroti (1475−1564), born near Arrezzo in Tuscany, was the embodi-
ment of the Renaissance spirit. A painter, sculptor, architect and occasional poet, he, more
than any other artist of the era, left an indelible mark on the Eternal City. The Sistine
Chapel, his
Pietà
in St Peter's Basilica, sculptures in the city's churches − his master-
pieces are legion and they remain city highlights to this day.
