The Crucifixion of St. Peter is a fresco painting by the Italian Renaissance master Michelangelo Buonarroti (c. 1546–1550). It is housed in the Cappella Paolina, Vatican Palace, in the Vatican City, Rome. It is the last fresco executed by Michelangelo.
The artist portrayed St. Peter in the moment in which he was raised by the Roman soldiers to the cross. Michelangelo concentrated the attention on the depiction of pain and suffering. The faces of the people present are clearly distressed. Pope Paul commissioned this fresco by Michelangelo in 1541 and unveiled it in his Cappella Paolina.
Restoration of the fresco completed in 2009 revealed an image believed to be a self-portrait of Michelangelo himself. The figure is standing in the upper left corner of the fresco, wearing a red tunic and a blue turban. Blue turbans were often worn by Renaissance sculptors to keep the dust out of their hair.
St. Peter
St. Peter is known by his many attributes, as “rock of the church,” the “first vicar of Christ,” or the first Pope. These attributes, specially the latter, made him the subject of many works of art in the Vatican. St Peter is depicted receiving the keys to the kingdom of Heaven from Christ on the wall of the Sistine chapel in Perugino’s The Delivery of the Keys. Pope Paul III commissioned Michelangelo to paint yet another fresco of St Peter around the year 1545. In contrast to themes of power and glory depicted by Perugino, Michelangelo elected to paint a much darker moment in the saint’s life. St Peter’s status as a major martyr is not only because he was the “first vicar of Christ,” but also because he was, like Christ, crucified. Although his final request is not mentioned in the canonical New Testament, it was popularly believed (due to the Apocryphal text known as the Acts of Peter) that he demanded: Crucify me head downwards, for I am not worthy to die as my master died. The Crucifixion fresco is situated on the eastern wall of the Pauline Chapel, which is significant because that is the location in which the cardinals have always held their elections for a new pope.
Formal analysis and compositional elements
The backdrop to the scene is a minimally elaborated mountainous background. Michelangelo did not render this background in great detail. Vasari states, “There are no landscapes to be seen in these scenes, nor any trees, buildings or other embellishments and variation.” The mountains are painted in a faint blue hue, which perhaps is intended to increase the depth of field through atmospheric perspective. The land represented in the middle ground and foreground is a pale yellow-green that is in some places more of a yellow ochre in color. The only real vertical elements in the painting are the figures, which occupy most of the foreground. Many clusters of people surround a single large central figure that is mounted on a crucifix. The most impressive formal attribute of this painting (besides its considerable size) is its central compositional element. Unlike the many prior representations of the martyrdom of Peter, this one depicts the raising of the cross- the moment before the crucifixion has truly begun. The angle of the crucifix activates the composition and creates much more dynamism in what might otherwise be a static image. The strong diagonal creates a cyclical visual pattern for the eyes to follow. If one reads the painting from left to right, the figures ascending the steps on the bottom left lead the eye upward towards a cluster of equestrian figures. They direct the eye to the group of people located on the top right corner, which in turn lead to one end of the crucifix. The other end of the crucifix points again to the men who are climbing up the steps. Michelangelo also created many strong diagonals with the placement of his figures and the extension of their arms and legs towards a central point of convergence. The position of St Peter's body in this work is often noted as Michelangelo's most interesting innovation. He defied convention by placing Peter's upper body so that he needs to crane upward and twist his neck to make eye contact with the viewer's gaze. This is a far cry from the painted visages of the final moments of countless martyrs, which is typically a passive uplifted gaze. The saint's penetrating stare suggests that he demands the witness of his audience; he demands their focus and gaze, and beseeches that his sacrifice not be deemed in vain.