550th anniversary of the birth of Michelangelo

On the occasion of the 550th anniversary of the birth of Michelangelo Buonarroti (Caprese, 6 March 1475 – Rome, 18 February 1564), the Postal and Philatelic Service of the Vatican City State celebrates the absolute genius of the Italian Renaissance with a series of postcards commemorating his deep and fruitful connection with Vatican City, custodian of some of his greatest and most universal works. The postcards in the Vatican issue evoke Michelangelo's three great cycles of frescoes: the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, with the famous episode of the Creation of Adam; the Last Judgement, with the majestic figure of Christ the Judge; the Pauline Chapel, with the Crucifixion of Peter and the Conversion of Saul, works of intense drama and profound spirituality. The value stamp reproduces Raphael's portrait of Michelangelo in the “School of Athens”, a tribute from one great Renaissance artist to another, symbolising the perfect harmony between art and intelligence. The case accompanying the series features a detail from the Crucifixion of Peter in the Pauline Chapel, in which a self-portrait of Michelangelo himself has recently been identified, a rare and moving sign of his spiritual presence in the work. With this issue, Vatican City once again pays tribute to Michelangelo, a universal artist whose vision combined classical beauty with the depth of Christian mystery, offering humanity eternal images of faith, hope and salvation. The case reproduces a detail of the Crucifixion of Peter in the Pauline Chapel with a recently identified self-portrait of the artist. The postcards refer to Michelangelo's three great cycles of frescoes: the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel (€1.30, with the Creation of Adam), the Last Judgement (€ 1.35, Christ the Judge); the Pauline Chapel (€ 2.55, Crucifixion of Peter, € 3.35 Conversion of Saul).