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The Vatican Museums said Michelangelo’s “The Last Judgment” fresco in the Sistine Chapel will undergo a three-month cleaning, its first major restoration in three decades. The Vatican said Monday that the work is aimed at improving the fresco’s appearance and preserving it as visitor access continues.
The Vatican Museums said the chapel will remain open to visitors during the cleaning, although scaffolding will partially obstruct views of the fresco. The museum said the conservation work is scheduled as a three-month project.
The Vatican Museums described the cleaning as the first major restoration since 1994. The museum said the cleaning will remove microparticle buildup on the plaster from the large volume of people visiting the chapel each day.
The museum called the deposit a “widespread whitish haze,” saying it is produced by “the deposition of microparticles of foreign substances carried by air movements.” The Vatican also said it monitors the Sistine Chapel’s humidity and temperature levels and takes proactive steps to protect the artwork.
More than 6 million people visit the Vatican Museums each year, according to the Vatican Museums’ statement. With so many visitors in a small space, the museum said it continually tracks environmental conditions in the chapel.
The Sistine Chapel is named after Pope Sixtus IV, an art patron who oversaw the construction of the main papal chapel in the 15th century. The works in the chapel, including “The Last Judgment,” were commissioned later by Pope Julius II, the Vatican Museums said.
The Vatican Museums said Michelangelo painted the ceiling—depicting “The Creation of Adam”—between 1508 and 1512, and later returned to paint “The Last Judgment” on the wall behind the altar. The chapel hosted the May conclave that elected Pope Leo XIV, the Vatican Museums said.