10 Things You Didn't Know About Michelangelo Buonarroti

1. Michelangelo Became Famous After a Failed Art Forgery

Early in his career, Michelangelo carved a statue of a sleeping Cupid in the style of ancient Greek sculpture, which has not survived to this day. Upon seeing the work, his patron Lorenzo di Pierfrancesco de' Medici proposed an elaborate deception. "If you make it look as though it had lain buried in the ground for a long time, I could send it to Rome as an antique, and you could sell it for much more," he explained. Michelangelo agreed, and the Cupid, presented as a freshly unearthed archaeological find, was sold to Cardinal Raffaele Riario. Rumors of the scheme later reached the cardinal's ears and he got his money back, but he was so impressed by Michelangelo's craftsmanship that he invited him to Rome. The young sculptor ended up staying in the Eternal City for several years, where he received the commission for the "Pietà," the work that would earn him lasting acclaim.

2. "David" Was Carved From a Second-Rate Block of Marble

One of Michelangelo's most famous masterpieces, "David." Photo: Wikimedia Commons.

When it came to marble for sculpture, Michelangelo was known for being extremely selective, yet the famous "David" was carved from a block that many other artists had already written off as unusable. Known as "the Giant," the piece of marble had been commissioned almost forty years earlier for one of the sculptures of Florence Cathedral and had gone unused. Left out in the open, it deteriorated, and by the time Michelangelo took it on in 1501, it already bore the marks of more than one frustrated artist's chisel. Michelangelo later created one of his most famous works from it, though new research suggests that, because of the stone's poor quality, this statue is deteriorating faster than others.

3. The Artist Himself Can Be Recognized in Some of His Famous Works

Michelangelo's "The Last Judgment" (detail) in the Sistine Chapel, 1536–1541, photo: Wikimedia Commons

Michelangelo rarely signed his works and left behind no official self-portrait, but from time to time he slipped a stylized image of himself into his paintings and sculptures. The most famous hidden self-portrait was discovered in the 1541 Sistine Chapel fresco "The Last Judgment," in which Saint Bartholomew is shown holding his own flayed skin, whose face is believed to echo the artist's own. Michelangelo also portrayed himself as Saint Nicodemus, as he himself called the figure, in the "Florentine Pietà." Scholars also believe we can spot him in the crowd scene of the fresco "The Crucifixion of St. Peter."

4. He Worked Until the Last Week of His Life

Michelangelo's final work, the "Rondanini Pietà," 1564, photo: Wikimedia Commons

For much of his life, Michelangelo oversaw the construction of St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican. Even when he could no longer visit the construction site in person, he kept managing the work from home, sending drawings and sketches. Sculpture, however, remained Michelangelo's true love, and he worked in his home studio right up until the end. Just days before his death, he was still at work on the "Rondanini Pietà," depicting Jesus in the arms of the Virgin Mary.

5. The "Pietà" Is His Only Signed Work

Michelangelo's "Pietà," 1498–1499. Photo: Wikimedia Commons

According to Michelangelo's contemporary and biographer Giorgio Vasari, shortly after the "Pietà" was unveiled, Michelangelo caught wind of rumors that it was actually the work of another sculptor, Cristoforo Solari. He therefore decided to sign it, carving into the sash across Mary's chest: MICHAEL ANGELUS BONAROTUS FLORENTINUS FACIEBAT ("Michelangelo Buonarroti made this"). It was the first and last time he ever did so. Vasari recounts that Michelangelo later cursed this outburst of pride and swore never again to sign any of his works.

6. Michelangelo Disliked Leonardo da Vinci

"Michelangelo and Leonardo da Vinci passionately disliked one another," wrote their biographer Vasari. Both were strong personalities with utterly opposing views on art, so every encounter between them ended in a war of words. One day Leonardo was walking through the Piazza Santa Trinita in Florence, where several distinguished men were discussing Dante. They asked Leonardo to explain a passage that had them puzzled, but just then Michelangelo happened to pass by, and Leonardo suggested they ask the sculptor instead. The suggestion infuriated Michelangelo. Instead of joining the discussion of Dante, he addressed Leonardo disrespectfully, using the informal "you," and shot back: "Explain it yourself. You designed a horse meant to be cast in bronze, and you couldn't even manage to cast it." With that, he walked off, leaving Leonardo red-faced.

7. Michelangelo Could Be Vindictive

While Michelangelo was working on his masterpiece "The Last Judgment," Pope Paul III came to inspect the work accompanied by a retinue of prelates. Among them was the papal master of ceremonies, Biagio da Cesena, who was horrified by the sheer number of nude figures and protested loudly, insisting that such a fresco belonged in a roadside tavern rather than a chapel.

In response to his comments, Michelangelo painted the master of ceremonies into Hell as Minos, judge of souls, giving him large donkey's ears and a serpent poised to bite off his genitals. When Biagio indignantly complained to the pope, the pope replied that Hell, alas, was not within his jurisdiction.

8. Michelangelo Was the Wealthiest Artist of His Time

A villa in Tuscany once owned by Michelangelo, now on the market for nearly $10 million

While it has long been known that Michelangelo was far from poor, new research suggests he was in fact remarkably wealthy. Not only did Pope Julius II, one of his greatest patrons, pay him generously for his work, but the sculptor also invested successfully in real estate. Adding up all his assets, he could be considered not only one of the wealthiest artists of his era, but there is reason to believe he even outstripped Leonardo da Vinci, Titian, and Raphael in wealth. When Michelangelo died, he left behind an estate valued at 50,000, equivalent to roughly $50 million today.

9. Michelangelo Was Not Heterosexual

It is known that around 1530 Michelangelo fell in love with Tommaso dei Cavalieri, a young model. The sculptor wrote him several letters and sonnets revealing his feelings. Tommaso was one of the few people present at Michelangelo's deathbed in 1564.

10. He Hated His Most Famous Masterpiece

Michelangelo regarded painting as the cheapest and lowest form of art. He felt no passion for it and accepted commissions only for financial reasons. He was recommended for the Sistine Chapel ceiling frescoes by Raphael, who considered him a poor painter and hoped in this way to ruin his rival's reputation. As you have probably already guessed, the plan backfired.