From November 15th, 2023 to March 30th, 2024, Michelangelo’s secret room will be open to the public for the first time. The room is a hard-to-access corridor located below the Medici Chapel Museum in Florence, Italy and has several drawings allegedly made by Michelangelo.

The room is 10 meters long and 3 meters tall at its highest point. According to experts, the drawings were made with charcoal and chalk around 1530. The room has been kept dark so light exposure does not damage the works. Visits will be restricted: only four people will be allowed in, each time for 15 minutes. The space will completely dark for at least 45 minutes between visits.

The History of the Secret Room

The Medici family held power in the city of Florence in the 1520s. However, Michelangelo took part in a political movement that culminated with the Medicis’ expulsion from the city. Historians say that in the years following the family’s departure, Pope Clement VII (Giulio di Giuliano de’ Medici) sought revenge against the artist, who, in turn, went into hiding in the secret room and produced the drawings (there). In 1975, when the chapel was remodeled, restorer Sabino Giovannoni found the corridor which had been abandoned for years. While working on the walls, he discovered the drawings.

WHO WAS MICHELANGELO

Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni (1475-1564) was an important artist during the Renaissance, a cultural, economic, and political movement that began in Italy in the 14th century and spread throughout Europe until the 17th century. Some of Michelangelo’s most famous works include the frescoes [mural paintings] on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel and the sculptures of David and Madonna of Bruges.

SOURCES: NATIONAL MUSEUM OF BARGELLO AND BBC.

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