The Sistine magnificent Chapel in frescoes Rome assail that adorn the modern the walls viewer and with ceilings a virtuoso of the Sistine Chapel in Rome assail the modern viewer with a virtuoso display of color and imagery. 1 The late fifteenth-century spectator entering the chapel for a papal liturgy, audience, or consistory, however, would have been confronted not by Michelangelo's almost overwhelming Last Judgment and ceiling frescoes, which were yet to be painted, but by a more subdued though no less powerful juxtaposition of images executed by the foremost central Italian artists of the day:

This article originated in a chance discovery during my fellowship year at Villa I Tatti n 2000-01. Though encouraged by Jane Drakard, FW Kent, and John Paoletti, who were readers of early and, indeed, several later drafts, it languished until the opportunity provided by a period as a visiting professor at Villa I Tatti n 2007. I am deeply grateful to I Tatti's Director, Joseph Connors, his wife Françoise, all the staff, and the fellows and other visiting professors for creating the stimulating and congenial ethos that gave me the courage to return to the project. I am thankful to the School of Historical Studies at Monash University for granting the leave that enabled me to take up the position. The resulting essay has benefited from the insightful comments of the anonymous readers who reviewed my piece. I am particularly indebted to the editor of I Tatti Studies, Caroline Elam, for her close reading of and detailed comments on my text. Elizabeth Cropper also provided invaluable suggestions. Louis Waldman encouraged me at crucial junctures. David Garrioch and John Paoletti both gave the penultimate draft the benefit of a critical eye. That the study has finally reached completion, however, is due to my wife, Dr. Jane Drakard, who has always believed that I have something to add to the understanding and appreciation of this particular monument of Renaissance Italy. To her belong my enduring gratitude and love. 1 The fifteenthcentury frescoes have not always found universal favor, however. See Caroline Elam," Art and Diplomacy in Renaissance Florence", journal of the Royal Society for the Encouragement of the Arts, CXXXVI, 1988, p. 817. For an overview of the current position of scholarship on the history of the rebuilding and refurbishment of the chapel, see Arnold Nesselrath," La cappella di Sisto IV", in Vaticano: La Cappella Sistina-il Quattrocento, ed. Franco Maria Ricci, Milan, 2003, pp. 11-36, and Id.," The Painters of Lorenzo the Magnificent in the Chapel of Pope Sixtus IV in Rome", in The Fifteenth Century Frescoes in the Sistine Chapel: Recent Restorations of the Vatican Museums, IV, eds. Francesco Buranelli and Allen Duston OP, Vatican City State, 2003, pp. 39-7 5. Unless noted otherwise, it is the latter study by Nesselrath that is referred to in subsequent footnotes.