Cervini, Cardinal Marcello, 284–85
Charles II (king of France), 47
Chessed (“mercy”), 71 fig, 180, 185, 189, 232, 269
Chochmah/Wisdom, 200
Christianity: Neoplatonism bridging Judaism, Classical world and, 86; story of Moses foreshadowing Christ and, 19; successionism of, 11, 19, 298
Church of San Pietro in Vincoli (Rome): monument to Julius II at, 273–81; Moses statue at, 236–39, 276 fig, 277, 278 fig; photograph of, 276 fig; reclining statue of Julius II at, 278–79
Church of Santa Croce (Rome), 86
Church of Santa Maria Novella, 158
Church of Santo Spirito (Florence), 83, 84
Cicero, 303
Clement V, Pope, 47
Clement VII, Pope, 242, 244, 248, 249, 250
codes (secret symbols): used in art, 24–27; biblical references to, 27–28; concealing forbidden knowledge through, 31–34; esoteric knowledge, 34–37, 214; Michelangelo’s “David” poem of, 97; Renaissance and Baroque art use of, 28–29; sign language for the deaf, 35–36; “special effects,” 37–40; unauthorized artwork, 29–31; World War II use of, 23–24. See also Sistine Chapel secret symbolism; symbolism
Colonna, Vittoria, 259, 261–62, 283
Conclave (election of new pope), 296
confluence (flowing together of two rivers), 46
Constantine (Roman Emperor), 49
Constantinople (Byzantium), 48–50
Conversion of Saint Paul (Michelangelo), 279
Cosimo the Elder (de’ Medici), 50–52, 54, 62
Cosmatesque design, 14
Cosmatis, 14, 17, 18, 21
Council of Trent, 283, 287
Creation of Adam panel (Sistine Chapel), 197–201
Creation of Eve panel (Sistine Chapel), 201–2 fig
creation story: Sistine Chapel depicting creation of humans, 197–202 fig; Sistine Chapel depicting earth’s creation, 193–97
Cristoforo de Pretis, 36
Crucifix (Michelangelo), 84, 85 fig–86
Cumaean sibyl (Sistine Chapel), 175–78, 177 fig, 178
Daniele da Volterra, 287
Daniel (Sistine Chapel), 183
Dante Alighieri, 47, 61, 88, 94, 267, 275
Darwin, Charles, 11
David and Goliath spandrel (Sistine Chapel), 158, 162, 166 fig
David (Michelangelo), 96–101
deaf sign language, 35–36
Delphic sibyl (Sistine Chapel), 171–72 fig, 177
Deuteronomy 26:8, 165
The Diary of Anne Frank, 149
Divine Architect concept, 139–40
Donatello, 51
Drunkenness of Noah panel (Sistine Chapel), 190–92, 210–12
Egidio da Viterbo, 115–16, 125
eighteen (Life) symbolism, 241
Eritrean sibyl (Sistine Chapel), 172–73 fig
“esoteric knowledge” codes, 34–37, 214
Esther and Haman spandrel (Sistine Chapel), 158, 160 fig, 162–63, 166–67, 191
Etruscans, 5
Eve: creation of, 201–2 fig; forbidden fruit/Tree of Knowledge and role of, 203–6
Exodus 25:8, 3
Exodus 31:13, 144
Exodus 34:29, 237
Ezekiel (Sistine Chapel), 182 fig
faith: Leah and Rachel statues as symbolizing, 275; Nicodemus as symbol of, 281
Farnese family, 249–50
faux architectural framework (Sistine Chapel), 138–43, 146
Ficino, Marsilio, 52, 61–64, 68
1 Samuel 17, 162
five number symbolism, 226, 227 fig, 228–29
The Flood panel (Sistine Chapel), 208 fig–10
Florence: Basilica of Santa Croce in, 288, 289 fig; confluence of cultures and Jewish presence in, 52–54; contest between Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo in, 108–9; David (Michelangelo) as symbolizing, 99; Girolamo Savanarola’s influence in, 80–83, 86, 88, 96, 125; humanistic philosophy of, 42; Jewish community of, 52–54; de’ Medici family of, 17–18, 54–58; Michelangelo’s burial in, 3, 288; Platonic Academy (School of Athens) of, 52, 53, 61, 62; sabotage of Sistine by painters of, 17–22, 111–12; uniqueness of medieval, 46–47
“Florentine tendency,” 66
“flying bow bridge” scaffold, 118, 287, 290, 305–6
Fons Vitae (Fountain of life), 63
The Forbidden Fruit panel (Sistine Chapel), 202–6
forbidden knowledge symbolism, 31–34
Fourth Lateran Council (1215), 153
Fra Angelico, 7
Francesca di Neri, 42
French, Daniel, 36–37
Gallaudet, Thomas, 36–37
Galli, Jacopo, 91, 92
The Garden of Eden panel (Sistine Chapel), 69, 202–6, 211–12
Genesis 28:12, 270
Gevurah (“severity”), 71 fig, 180, 184, 189, 269
Ghirlandaio, Domenico, 18, 45, 57, 59, 157
Giuliano de’ Medici, 17–18, 239, 246
“giving the fig” gesture (Sistine Chapel), 136 fig, 176–77 fig, 178
Gli Spirituali (Spiritual Ones) movement, 261–62, 283
Goethe, 129
Gonzaga, Giulia, 283
Gozzoli, Benozzo, The Journey of the Magi by, 51 fig
Gregory XI, Pope, 48
Haman (Sistine Chapel), 158, 160 fig, 162–63, 166–67, 191
Hebrew prophets (Sistine Chapel): additional secret symbolism of, 184–86; corresponding to the Seven Middot, 179–83, 189–90; Daniel, 183; Ezekiel, 182; Isaiah, 181–82 fig; Jeremiah, 183, 184, 213–21 fig, 241; Joel, 181; Jonah, 39–40, 183–84, 223–32; Zechariah, 132–36 fig, 158, 181 fig
Hibbard, Howard, 76, 97, 299
Hod (“glory, majesty”), 71 fig, 180
Holy of Holies (Kodesh Kodoshim), 12, 295
Holy Menorah, 179
homosexuality, 64, 65–66, 243
Index of Forbidden Books, 283, 285, 295
Inferno (Dante), 267
Inghirami, Tommaso, 119, 130
Innocent III, Pope, 49
Inquisition, 87, 151, 283, 295
Isaac, 95, 145
Isaiah 29:14, 23
Isaiah 60:18, 157
Isaiah (Sistine Chapel), 181–82 fig
Jacob: The Ancestors panel including, 145; dream of, 12; Joseph’s coded message to, 27–28
Jacob’s Ladder (Sistine chapel), 270
Jeremiah (Sistine Chapel), 183, 184, 213–21 fig,
241
Jerusalem Temple: Holy of Holies (Kodesh Kodoshim) of, 12, 295; “the neck of the world” metaphor of, 304–5; number seven symbolism of the Menorah of, 16–17; Sistine Chapel as replacement of, 294–95; Sistine Chapel reproduction of heichal of, 6, 11–12, 137, 141, 294–95
Jesus Christ: The Ancestors panel disrupting chain of lineage of, 145–56; The Last Judgment depiction of, 256–58; Vatican on Haman’s death as pre figuring, 163
Jews: Florence community of, 52–54; forced to wear yellow badges, 153, 155 fig, 156; Holocaust and, 4; Inquisition persecution of, 87, 151, 283, 295; Sistine ceiling figures depicted as, 124–25, 150–56; spandrels [Sistine Chapel] representing salvation of, 157–67; Vatican II ending anti-Judaic teachings on, 156, 289. See also Judaism
Joel (Sistine Chapel), 181 fig
John Paul II, Pope, 289–90
John XXIII, Pope, 156, 289
Jonah (Sistine Chapel), 39–40, 183–84, 223–32
Joseph of Egypt, 27–28
The Journey of the Magi (Gozzoli), 51 fig
Judaism: architectural design metaphor of, 139–40; Christianity successionism of, 11; Ficino’s philosophical examination of, 63–64; forbidden fruit/Tree of Knowledge tradition in, 203–6; on lifelong good and evil internal conflict, 206, 212; as Michelangelo’s educational influence, 67–68; Neoplatonism bridging Christianity, Classical world and, 86; number seven symbolism in, 16–17, 179–81, 184, 189; Platonic Academy’s study of, 52, 53; rua
ch HaShem (Divine Wind, or Breath) of, 34; Seal of Solomon (Star of David) symbolism of, 14–17, 143. See also Jews; Kabbalistic thinking; Midrash; Talmud; Torah (Pentateuch)
Judith and Holofernes spandrel (Sistine Chapel), 158, 159 fig–62, 165, 184–85
Julius III del Monte, Pope, 284
Julius II, Pope: as cardinal, 105–6; Cathedral of Bologna statue of, 113–14, 169–70; continual conflict over tomb of, 240, 243–44, 273; death of, 123; Michelangelo invited to Rome by, 108–14; Michelangelo’s work on tomb of, 236–39, 273–81; nephew of Sixtus, 8; oak life symbolism representing, 29; original plans for papal pyramid in St. Peter’s by, 297–300 fig; Il Papa Terribile title of, 106, 113, 156; plans for new Sistine ceiling by, 107–8, 115–23; portrait of, 106 fig; reclining statue (Michelangelo) of, 278–79; reconquest of lost papal states by, 113; St. Peter’s Basilica reconstruction by, 106–7, 112–13; Sistine Chapel as funeral monument to, 299–300; Sistine Chapel obscene gestures made toward, 136 fig, 176–77 fig, 178, 195 fig–96, 210, 300; Zechariah image as showing face of, 134 fig. See also della Rovere, Cardinal Giuliano; Sistine Chapel ceiling
Kabbalistic meditational device, 14
Kabbalistic thinking: Adam Kadmon (primordial human) of, 197, 199; on bodies of Tzaddikim (truly righteous souls), 104; harmonizing duality of male/female aspects, 148, 164; influence on the Sistine ceiling paintings, 73, 119; on intimacy, 64; Last Judgment influenced by Michelangelo’s, 269–72; on letter bet, 229; Middle Path (path of the righteous) in, 189–90; on Moses’s Mount Sinai visit, 237–38; Pico’s study of, 70; positive and negative duality of, 44, 72, 79, 212; Renaissance art influenced by, 54; on seven days of creation, 179; significance of numbers in, 72–73; symbolism of, 14, 34, 35; triangle symbol of, 148; Zechariah significance in, 133. See also Judaism; Sistine Chapel secret symbolism; Ten S’firot (Tree of Life)
King, Ross, 57
Lang, Jack, 57
Laocoön (Polydoros), 110–11 fig, 193, 194 fig
Larger Chapel (Cappella Maggiore), 7
The Last Judgment panel (Sistine Chapel): Daniele da Volterra ordered to censor the, 287; elements, figures, and symbolisms of the, 251, 253–58, 262–72; Kabbalah influence on the, 269–72; King Minos depicted in, 129, 271–72 fig; Michelangelo commissioned to create, 249–51; Michelangelo’s self-portrait in, 264, 301; the saved and the damned in, 266–69; Savonarola depicted in, 81, 82 fig; simony (Greed) depicted in, 267–68 fig; Ten Commandments shape of the, 252 fig; Tommaso dei Cavalieri’s face used in, 262–63, 264–65 fig
The Last Judgment (Venusti), 262–63
The Last Supper (Leonardo da Vinci), 38, 302
Lawrence, Saint, 262, 263
Leah (Michelangelo), 274 fig, 275
Leonardo da Vinci: accused of being a “sodomite,” 243; The Annunciation special effects coding by, 38–39 fig; dissections performed by, 32–33; The Last Supper by, 38, 302; The Madonna of the Rocks sign language codes use by, 36–37 fig; Mona Lisa (La Gioconda) by, 24, 33, 302; Prime Mover thought of, 63; rivalry between Michelangelo and, 108–9
Leo X, Pope, 32, 239–40, 243
Libyan sibyl (Sistine Chapel), 174–75 fig, 177–78
limbo concept, 150
Lincoln Memorial (Washington, DC), 36–37 fig
Lionardo di Buonarrota, 41–42
Lorenzo and the Artists of His Court (Vannini), 55 fig
Lorenzo de’ Medici: artists’ bottega (workshop) founded by, 56–57; attempted assassination of, 17–18, 57; death of, 82; detail from tomb of, 215 fig; Michelangelo taken into household of, 57–58; political intrigues of, 54–58; Sistine Chapel sabotage by, 18–21, 294. See also de’ Medici family
Ludovico di Buonarrota, 42, 43, 44–45, 244
Luther, Martin, 241, 258, 283
Madonna della Scala (Madonna of the Stairs) [Michelangelo], 76–77 fig, 78, 147
The Madonna of the Rocks (Leonardo da Vinci), 36–37 fig
Maeder, Edward, 153
The Magic Flute (Mozart), 35
Maimonides (RaMBaM) [Rabbi Moses Ben Maimon], 53, 63, 260
“making the fig,” 136 fig
Malchut (“kingdom”), 71 fig, 179
Mancinelli, Fabrizio, 123–24
Marcellus II, Pope, 285
Marini, Francesca, 38
Martyrdom of Saint Peter (Michelangelo), 279
Mary Tudor (Queen of England), 284
Masonic symbolism, 34–35
Matas, Nicolò, 288
de’ Medici Chapel (Michelangelo), 240–41, 242–43, 244
de’ Medici family: Jewish community linked to, 52–53; Lorenzo de’ Medici, 17–18, 54–58; papacy claimed by, 239–40; rise of the, 17–18; rivalry between Sixtus IV and, 17–18, 57. See also Lorenzo de’ Medici
Menorah, 16–17
Mershberger, Frank, 199
Meshullemet (The Ancestors panel), 151, 152 fig
Michelangelo Buonarroti: broken nose and resulting grandiosity by, 74–76; burial place of, 3, 288; “coded” allusions used by, 27; coding in “David” poem by, 97; Colosseum as school story on, 137–38; declared enemy of the Church and then pardoned, 242–43; dislike for painting by, 101–2, 108; early artistic works of, 57–58, 76–80; early life of, 41–45; formazione (education) of, 58–68, 88, 119; homosexuality of, 243; invited to Rome by Julius II, 108–14; John Paul II’s public “rehabilitation” of, 290; kidney disease symptoms suffered by, 114, 196–97; last days and death of, 282–91; life and works following Sistine Chapel paintings, 235–47; moves to Bologna and Rome by, 87–91; private letter written by (1510), 121 fig–22; protests expressed through symbolism by, 30; relationship between Vittoria and, 261–62; rivalry between Leonardo da Vinci and, 108–9; self-identification with Jonah by, 223–26; Sistine ceiling project purposely untitled by, 302–4; Sistine project challenges faced by, 117, 120–22; statue of, 75 fig; study of the human body by, 83–87; taken into de’ Medici household, 57–58; Tommaso dei Cavalieri as inspiration of, 244–47, 262–63, 287; Vatican poem by, 125–26, 267. See also Buonarroti family
Michelangelo’s Torso, 258
Michelangelo’s works: Apollo statue, 88; Bacchus, 90 fig–91; Bandini Pietà, 280 fig–81; Basilica of St. Peter’s dome designed by, 279–80; battle of Cascina, 108–9; Battle of the Centaurs, 78–80, 206; Cathedral of Bologna Julius II statue, 113–14, 169–70; Conversion of Saint Paul, 279; Crucifix, 84, 85 fig–86; David, 96–101; Jonah and use of trompe l’oeuil, 39–40; Madonna della Scala (Madonna of the Stairs), 76–77 fig, 78, 147; Martyrdom of Saint Peter, 279; de’ Medici Chapel, 240–41, 242–43, 244; Moses, 236–39, 276 fig, 277, 278 fig; Pietà, 91–95; Porta Pia (gate to Rome), 286 fig–87; Prisoners in Stone, 298 fig; Rachel and Leah, 274 fig, 275; sleeping Cupid statue, 89; tomb of Julius II, 236–39, 273–81; Tondo Doni, 102 fig–3; Victory, 245–46 fig, 247 fig. See also Sistine Chapel ceiling
Middle Path (path of the righteous), 189–90
Midrash, 68–69, 95, 139–40, 165, 205, 229. See also Judaism
Mikha-el ha-Malakh (angel Michael), 43
Minos, King (Sistine Chapel), 129, 271–72 fig
Mona Lisa (La Gioconda) [Leonardo da Vinci], 24, 33, 302
Moses, 19, 164, 237–38
Moses de Leon, 70
Moses (Michelangelo), 236–39, 276 fig, 277, 278 fig
Mozart, Wolfgang Amadeus, 34–35
Nazi Germany, 153, 155–56
neck symbolism, 304–5
“the neck of the world” metaphor, 304–5