The Battle of Anghiari (Leonardo da Vinci)
In 1504 Leonardo da Vinci was given the commission by gonfaloniere Piero Soderini, a contract signed by Niccolò Machiavelli, to decorate the Hall of Five Hundred. At the same time his rival Michelangelo, who had just finished his "David", was designated the opposite wall. This was the only time that Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo worked together on the same project. The painting of Michelangelo depicted an episode from the Battle of Cascina, when a group of bathing soldiers was surprised by the enemy. However Michelangelo did not stay in Florence long enough to complete the project. He was able to finish his cartoon, but only began the painting. He was invited back to Rome in 1505 by the newly appointed Pope Julius II and was commissioned to build the Pope's tomb.
Vatican Splendors
At the entrance of the fourth gallery is "The Creation of Adam", a replica from the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. It is displayed in a walkway that contains a dome shaped roof immediately above the viewers' heads. Gazing upwards, people are placed momentarily back into Michelangelo's world when he initially painted it. "Originally commissioned to paint the Twelve Apostles against a starry sky, [Michelangelo] lobbied for a different and more complex scheme." He received his wish. Upon completion, the intricate masterpiece possessed over three hundred figures and nine stories from the Book of Genesis at its center. Michelangelo, however, is not the only master on display. "The Madonna" of Sassoferrato is also present, and although its image is present on many holiday cards, it has never been exhibited outside of Rome. Complementing this is Guercino's 1622 "Portrait of Christ with Crown of Thorns", a painting that has never been shown outside or inside the Vatican. Amidst these paintings are numerous sculptures highlighted by a life size replica "Pietà", also completed by Michelangelo at age twenty-four. The exhibit also displays Michelangelo's original architectural drawings, journal entries, and sketches.