Photo: Andreas G. Nerlich, et al.
(2024),The Breast.
This interdisciplinary field diagnoses representations of potential illnesses within renowned artworks.
Photo: Andreas G. Nerlich, et al. (2024),The Breast.
Theresults of their studywere recently published inThe Breast,an interdisciplinary journal focusing on advancements in breast cancer prevention.
The woman sits hunched within the frescosThe Floodpanel, centering around the biblical drama of Noahs Ark.
The experts behind the study claim that the inclusion is no accident, given Michelangelos preoccupation with human anatomy.
The ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, featuring Michelangelo’s fresco. (Photo: Antoine Taveneaux viaWikimedia Commons)
Indeed, Nerlich and his team posit that Michelangelo imagined breast cancer as a thematic symbol in this fresco.
The discovery follows one from decades earlier, concluding that the subject of MichelangelosNightsculpturealso had breast cancer.
Michelangelos Sistine Chapel fresco is one of the most iconic works in art history.
Detail from Michelangelo’s fresco. (Photo: courtesy of Andreas G. Nerlich, et al. (2024),The Breast)
The ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, featuring Michelangelo’s fresco.
Detail from Michelangelo’s fresco.
(Photo: courtesy of Andreas G. Nerlich, et al.
“Night” by Michelangelo. 1526-1531. Basilica of San Lorenzo, Florence (Photo: George M. Groutas viaWikimedia Commons,CC BY 2.0)
