The 16th-century Florentine artist Michelangelo was commissioned by Pope Julius II to paint the Sistine Chapel’s ceiling and the upper section of its walls.

Michelangelo’s The Creation of Adam [top] next to the sketch he drew in a letter to friend Giovanni da Pistoia between 1509 and 1511 [bottom]. Courtesy of Adriano Marinazzo.

There’s a scientific secret hiding in one of the most famous paintings of all time. It resides on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, painted by Michelangelo, as God gives Adam the first spark of ...

Michelangelo’s Pietà offers a parable of how human creativity, rightly ordered, gives glory back to God. Joseph Pearce Blogs Queen of Queens: The Pietà’s Epic Journey from Rome to America ...

It's surely the biggest question of all – does God exist? For centuries, the answer has been a huge subject of debate, argued over by priests, academics, and the public alike.

Canadian author and journalist Jeannie Marshall, who has lived in Rome for 20 years with her husband and son, wanted to understand the chapel in a way that would take her deeper into its mysteries.

However, a later pontiff, Pope Julius II, commissioned works by Michelangelo, who painted the ceiling and vaults depicting scenes from Genesis, including The Creation of Adam, between 1508 and 1512.

Michelangelo's The Fall and Expulsion from Paradise from the Vatican's Sistine Chapel (1508-12). There is academic debate over a female figure shown in the Creation of Adam.