Vatican Museums

This volume documents the extraordinary maintenance work carried out in 2026 on the Last Judgment by Michelangelo, aimed at removing a surface patina that had altered the fresco’s original colours.

The publication retraces the genesis and reception of Michelangelo’s masterpiece through a series of art-historical essays and provides a detailed account of the interventions and conservation strategies implemented by the Vatican restorers. The book also presents the results of the diagnostic investigations, which proved crucial in guiding conservators and technical specialists toward the most appropriate and least invasive treatments. Considerable space is devoted to photographic documentation, allowing readers to appreciate the various stages of the intervention and the remarkable results achieved upon its completion. In addition, the volume offers up-to-date reflections on preventive conservation and the management of an artwork viewed daily by millions of visitors, providing a comprehensive overview of the challenges and solutions involved in safeguarding this extraordinary fresco and ensuring its transmission, unaltered, to future generations.