In 1533, Clement VII (pontiff from 1523 to 1534) gave Michelangelo the task of further altering the decoration of the Sistine Chapel by painting the ''Last Judgement'' on the altar wall. The Last Judgement, painted between 1535 and 1541, is centered around the dominant figure of Christ, captured in the moment preceding that when the verdict of the Last Judgement is uttered ([[Matthew]] 25:31-46). His calm imperious gesture seems to both command attention and placate the surrounding agitation. | In 1533, Clement VII (pontiff from 1523 to 1534) gave Michelangelo the task of further altering the decoration of the Sistine Chapel by painting the ''Last Judgement'' on the altar wall. The Last Judgement, painted between 1535 and 1541, is centered around the dominant figure of Christ, captured in the moment preceding that when the verdict of the Last Judgement is uttered ([[Matthew]] 25:31-46). His calm imperious gesture seems to both command attention and placate the surrounding agitation. |