Michelangelo's 'Last Judgment' undergoes first cleaning in 30 years

Michelangelo's "The Last Judgment" fresco is undergoing its first major restoration since 1994 to remove a whitish haze from visitor-generated particles.newsmax+2
The 180-square-meter masterpiece, painted between 1536 and 1541, will be obscured by scaffolding with a high-definition reproduction displayed for visitors.finestresullarte+1
Restorers aim to complete work before Holy Week in late March, when the Sistine Chapel sees heavy traffic ahead of Easter.newsmax+1

Scaffolding now surrounds one of the most celebrated works in Western art history. The Vatican announced Monday that Michelangelo's "The Last Judgment," the imposing fresco depicting heaven and hell on the altar wall of the Sistine Chapel, is undergoing its first major restoration in three decades.newsmax+2

The three-month cleaning, which began in mid-January, aims to remove what chief restorer Paolo Violini described as "a widespread whitish haze, caused by the deposition of microparticles of foreign substances carried by air movements." More than 6 million visitors pass through the Vatican Museums each year, and their presence has gradually dulled the chromatic contrasts Michelangelo intended when he painted the 180-square-meter masterpiece between 1536 and 1541.news4jax+2

Chapel Remains Open to Visitors

The Sistine Chapel will remain accessible throughout the restoration period. A high-definition reproduction of the fresco has been installed on canvas screening the construction site, allowing visitors to appreciate the work in its visual entirety while experts labor behind.reuters+1

Violini, who assumed leadership of the Vatican Museums' Laboratory for the Restoration of Paintings and Wooden Materials in August 2025, said the scaffolding consists of about a dozen working platforms with an elevator, enabling 10 to 12 specialists to work simultaneously in close contact with the artwork. The team includes 26 in-house experts plus external collaborators.romereports+3

The goal is to complete the work before Holy Week, which begins in late March, when the chapel sees heavy visitor traffic ahead of Easter.news.artnet+1

A Continuation of Vatican Stewardship

The restoration marks the first major intervention since 1994, when a controversial but widely celebrated multi-year cleaning unveiled colors and details that had been obscured for centuries. Unlike that extensive restoration, which took approximately four years to complete, this effort is described as "extraordinary maintenance" rather than a full conservation overhaul.wikipedia+3

The operation is supported by the Florida Chapter of the Patrons of the Arts in the Vatican Museums. It follows the Vatican's broader conservation initiatives, including an ongoing five-year restoration of Raphael's Loggia in the Apostolic Palace.finestresullarte+2

The chapel, which hosted the May conclave that elected Pope Leo XIV, continues to function as both a sacred space and one of the world's premier artistic destinations.abcnews.go+1

Sources (29)