The Sistine Chapel is the principal papal chapel in the Apostolic Palace of Vatican City, dedicated to the Assumption of the Virgin and constructed for Pope Sixtus IV in the later 15th century. Designed by Baccio Pontelli and executed by Giovannino (Giovanni) de’ Dolci between 1477 and 1480, the chapel measures approximately 40.23 m by 13.40 m with a height of 20.70 m, and occupies the first floor of the Papal Palace. According to the Holy See’s catalogue, the initial decorative campaign occurred in 1481–1483. Sistine Chapel – Holy See. The chapel’s consecration took place on 15 August 1483. Web Gallery of Art.

Architecture and purpose

• –The rectangular brick chapel has six arched windows on each long wall beneath a shallow barrel (cross) vault, and functions as the pope’s oratory for major ceremonies. Since 1878 it has served as the fixed venue of every papal election. Sistine Chapel – Holy See; Britannica. A marble transenna and cantoria divide the liturgical space; these elements are attributed to Andrea Bregno, Mino da Fiesole, and Giovanni Dalmata. Web Gallery of Art. The pavement is in opus alexandrinum (Cosmatesque) typical of medieval Roman church floors. Britannica.

Quattrocento wall cycles (1481–1482)

• –Under Sixtus IV, leading painters executed two facing narrative cycles: episodes from the Life of Christ on the north wall and from the Life of Moses on the south wall. Principal contributors included Pietro Perugino, Sandro Botticelli, Domenico Ghirlandaio, Cosimo Rosselli, and Luca Signorelli (with workshop collaborators such as Pinturicchio). Vatican Museums, Dept. of 15th–16th Century Art; Britannica. The iconographic program juxtaposes Old and New Covenant narratives while painted papal portraits appear between the windows. Vatican Museums, Dept. of 15th–16th Century Art; Web Gallery of Art.

Michelangelo’s ceiling (1508–1512)

• –In 1508 Pope Julius II commissioned Michelangelo to fresco the vault; the work was inaugurated on All Saints’ Day (1 November) 1512. Sistine Chapel – Holy See. The scheme centers on nine Genesis scenes framed by prophets and sibyls and accompanied by ancestral figures of Christ; among the central panels is The Creation of Adam. Britannica. The ceiling quickly became a model for High Renaissance invention and figure style. Britannica.

The Last Judgment (1536–1541)

• –Michelangelo returned to paint the altar wall with The Last Judgment, commissioned by Clement VII and completed under Paul III, with the unveiling on 31 October 1541. The fresco replaces earlier altar-wall paintings and presents more than 300 figures in a dramatic eschatological vision; later 16th‑century interventions added draperies to some nudes. Britannica; Britannica – video transcript.

Raphael’s tapestries and the lower register

• –In 1515–1519 Raphael designed a set of tapestries illustrating the Acts of the Apostles (Saints Peter and Paul) for the chapel’s lowest wall register; woven in Brussels by Pieter van Aelst, several were first displayed in the chapel on 26 December 1519 and the remaining arrived by 1521. The cartoons (seven survive) belong to the British Royal Collection and are on long-term loan to the V&A. Vatican Press Office; Factum Foundation. The tapestries are now hung only on special occasions. Britannica.

Liturgical and electoral use

• –As the pope’s chapel, the space hosts major rites and, in sede vacante, the Papal conclave conducted by the College of Cardinals under strict seclusion (extra omnes) and two‑thirds majority voting. Britannica – Papal Conclave; USCCB. During preparations for the 2025 conclave, the chapel was closed to visitors beginning 28 April 2025. Reuters; Vatican News.

Conservation

• –A major restoration program in the 1980s–1990s cleaned the ceiling (completed 1989) and The Last Judgment (completed 1994). Britannica – Restoration of the Ceiling; Britannica. In 2025, the Vatican Museums announced further diagnostic checks focused on the impact of mass tourism, with additional assessments scheduled for 2026. The Times.

World Heritage

• –The chapel forms part of the State of Vatican City, inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1984 under criteria (i), (ii), (iv) and (vi). UNESCO World Heritage Centre.