4 ms·

Michelangelo's secret message in the Sistine Chapel?

23 points by hardik 16y ago

gamache 16y ago
Here's some illustration of the previously-discovered hidden brain on the Sistine Chapel ceiling: http://boingboing.net/2009/12/16/brain-on-the-sistine.html http://boingboing.net/2009/12/16/brain-on-the-sistine.html
- aohtsab 16y ago
  This one almost seems more plausible.
- deleted 16y ago
  [deleted]
- sesqu 16y ago
  While I have previously wondered about the fabric shape, I don't think the similarity is great enough. Unless there is significant variation in brains, the silhouettes differ in way too many places and only really share a couple of major features. However, the shape is similar enough for me to accept anatomical inspiration. I could see him wanting to draw something around god, sketching a cloud, and then remembering the shape of a brain and going with that. If indeed the artist was fascinated with anatomy, it would make sense that anatomical shapes could be found all over his more freeform work.
twidlit 16y ago
"...God Creating Adam in the central panel on the ceiling was a perfect anatomical illustration of the human brain in cross section..." + "..construction the voice box of God out of the brain stem of man.." = The human mind created God.
- teamonkey 16y ago
  Michelangelo believed in God, even if he had issues with the Catholic church. His meaning was probably the reverse - that man's mind was created by the voice of God.
_flag 16y ago
This is just like all those things people find in Da Vinci's paintings. If you look long and hard enough, you can find hidden messages in just about anything, but I seriously doubt this is anything more than a coincidence.
- access_denied 16y ago
  Indeed, for example the hidden message in your comment is "look long and har enough +++ you can find hidden message +++ seriously +++ this is more than a coincidence". Sort of a meta-thing, I get it.
- rokhayakebe 16y ago
  In the case of Michelangelo it may not be a coincidence. If you read "The Da Vinci Code" you will find several such plays in his artwork.
  - bad_user 16y ago
    Don't tell you've read that piece of trash :) My respect for Tom Hanks dropped a little when I saw him in the movie.
    - aohtsab 16y ago
      piece of trash it may be .. but his other book "Angels & Demons" introduced me to CERN. :) It also opened me up to art & art history.
alttab 16y ago
Interesting, and speculative.
dimarco 16y ago
I thought this would be about "The Last Judgement". During a tour of Vatican, we were told that Michelangelo snuck in a painting of a Bishop who was very anti-Michelangelo into the bottom right corner of the Last Judgement. The bottom of the painting representing hell(I believe), the Bishop is getting his genitalia swallowed by a giant snake. The story goes that, when presenting the Last Judgement, the curtain was lifted from the bottom right corner. Pausing for a moment so everybody could see the Bishop and the snake. here is the image: http://www.archweb.it/arte/artisti_M/Michelangelo_G/images/Michelangelo%20-%20The%20Last%20Judgment.JPG http://www.archweb.it/arte/artisti_M/Michelangelo_G/images/M... Edit(from Wikipedia): When the Pope's own Master of Ceremonies, Biagio da Cesena, said "it was mostly disgraceful that in so sacred a place there should have been depicted all those nude figures, exposing themselves so shamefully," and that it was no work for a papal chapel but rather "for the public baths and taverns," Michelangelo worked the Cesena's face into the scene as Minos, judge of the underworld (far bottom-right corner of the painting) with Donkey ears {i.e.foolishness} while his nudity is covered by a coiled snake. It is said that when Cesena complained to the Pope, the pontiff joked that his jurisdiction did not extend to hell, so the portrait would have to remain
- carbon8 16y ago
  Interesting. Here's a clearer image: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Lastjudgement.jpg http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Lastjudgement.jpg
pbhjpbhj 16y ago
This is reminiscent of Muslims seeing Allah (in Arabic script) written on everything or Catholics seeing Mary's image, etc.. Flip reverse the tables and these people would be being called wackos by the scientific press, very interesting new step in the religiosity of fundamentalist atheism IMO. That said, it seems quite likely to be truly based on the anatomical image - I don't think the conclusion is obvious or follows without further assumptions though. There's a nice juxtaposition here with the argument by design - surely those who would be most desirous of saying that the church commissioners were pwned would also be those who would have to say that an image of a brain could arise by chance and not be designed in at all ... ?
- ugh 16y ago
  Am I just too stupid to understand you or are you talking gibberish? What’s atheism got to do with this? What’s creationism got to do with this?
  - pohl 16y ago
    I think (s)he's suggesting that Michelangelo is a blind watchmaker and we're seeing a brain on some French toast.
    - ugh 16y ago
      Problem with that comparison (seeing Virgin Mary in toast = seeing brain in painting) is only that Michelangelo’s paintings are most definitely a product of intelligent design – no surprise there. If those who see Virgin Mary in a toast would claim that the toaster manufacturer made the toaster so that Virgin Mary would be burnt into toasts I would have no problem with that. That would be a testable hypothesis. It’s just that they don’t. They claim a miracle happened and no amount of evidence could convince them that isn’t the case.
      - pbhjpbhj 16y ago
        >If those who see Virgin Mary in a toast would claim that the toaster manufacturer made the toaster so that Virgin Mary would be burnt into toasts I would have no problem with that. That would be a testable hypothesis. It’s just that they don’t. I guess in those terms a hypothesis could be that the universe is deterministic in some sense and that the image of the Virgin Mary was effectively programmed into the initial state so as to emerge on that piece of toast. Untestable fo' sure.
sesqu 16y ago
While I have previously wondered about the fabric shape, I don't think the similarity is great enough. Unless there is significant variation in brains, the silhouettes differ in way too many places and only really share a couple of major features.
jmount 16y ago
I think you are just hearing what a brain-scientist sees when he/she looks at a cloud.
sesqu 16y ago
Pope Paul IV interpreted Michelangelo’s Last Judgment, painted on the wall of the Sistine Chapel 20 years after completing the ceiling, as defaming the church by suggesting that Jesus and those around him communicated with God directly without need of Church. I don't understand what thought processes are required for a pope to condemn the idea of Jesus making do without the Christian Church. Apparently Pope Paul IV was highly educated and very harsh, and fought Protestants (who had emerged just a few decades earlier). While he understandably didn't want people considering the spiritualist approach to faith, surely he must accept that at least Jesus would have been a spiritualist of some sort? This sounds like cognitive dissonance, and Streisand Effect-y. Must have been a hard time for the church. As for the artwork, I can't see the similarity even with the explanation. They mentioned a plurality of examples, and that might be convincing if shown, but as it stands the single examples are weak.

23 points by hardik 16y ago

Here's some illustration of the previously-discovered hidden brain on the Sistine Chapel ceiling: http://boingboing.net/2009/12/16/brain-on-the-sistine.html http://boingboing.net/2009/12/16/brain-on-the-sistine.html

aohtsab 16y ago
This one almost seems more plausible.
deleted 16y ago
[deleted]
sesqu 16y ago
While I have previously wondered about the fabric shape, I don't think the similarity is great enough. Unless there is significant variation in brains, the silhouettes differ in way too many places and only really share a couple of major features. However, the shape is similar enough for me to accept anatomical inspiration. I could see him wanting to draw something around god, sketching a cloud, and then remembering the shape of a brain and going with that. If indeed the artist was fascinated with anatomy, it would make sense that anatomical shapes could be found all over his more freeform work.

twidlit 16y ago

"...God Creating Adam in the central panel on the ceiling was a perfect anatomical illustration of the human brain in cross section..." + "..construction the voice box of God out of the brain stem of man.." = The human mind created God.

teamonkey 16y ago
Michelangelo believed in God, even if he had issues with the Catholic church. His meaning was probably the reverse - that man's mind was created by the voice of God.

_flag 16y ago

This is just like all those things people find in Da Vinci's paintings. If you look long and hard enough, you can find hidden messages in just about anything, but I seriously doubt this is anything more than a coincidence.

access_denied 16y ago
Indeed, for example the hidden message in your comment is "look long and har enough +++ you can find hidden message +++ seriously +++ this is more than a coincidence". Sort of a meta-thing, I get it.
rokhayakebe 16y ago
In the case of Michelangelo it may not be a coincidence. If you read "The Da Vinci Code" you will find several such plays in his artwork.
- bad_user 16y ago
  Don't tell you've read that piece of trash :) My respect for Tom Hanks dropped a little when I saw him in the movie.
  - aohtsab 16y ago
    piece of trash it may be .. but his other book "Angels & Demons" introduced me to CERN. :) It also opened me up to art & art history.

alttab 16y ago

Interesting, and speculative.

dimarco 16y ago

I thought this would be about "The Last Judgement". During a tour of Vatican, we were told that Michelangelo snuck in a painting of a Bishop who was very anti-Michelangelo into the bottom right corner of the Last Judgement. The bottom of the painting representing hell(I believe), the Bishop is getting his genitalia swallowed by a giant snake. The story goes that, when presenting the Last Judgement, the curtain was lifted from the bottom right corner. Pausing for a moment so everybody could see the Bishop and the snake. here is the image: http://www.archweb.it/arte/artisti_M/Michelangelo_G/images/Michelangelo%20-%20The%20Last%20Judgment.JPG http://www.archweb.it/arte/artisti_M/Michelangelo_G/images/M... Edit(from Wikipedia): When the Pope's own Master of Ceremonies, Biagio da Cesena, said "it was mostly disgraceful that in so sacred a place there should have been depicted all those nude figures, exposing themselves so shamefully," and that it was no work for a papal chapel but rather "for the public baths and taverns," Michelangelo worked the Cesena's face into the scene as Minos, judge of the underworld (far bottom-right corner of the painting) with Donkey ears {i.e.foolishness} while his nudity is covered by a coiled snake. It is said that when Cesena complained to the Pope, the pontiff joked that his jurisdiction did not extend to hell, so the portrait would have to remain

carbon8 16y ago
Interesting. Here's a clearer image: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Lastjudgement.jpg http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Lastjudgement.jpg

pbhjpbhj 16y ago

This is reminiscent of Muslims seeing Allah (in Arabic script) written on everything or Catholics seeing Mary's image, etc.. Flip reverse the tables and these people would be being called wackos by the scientific press, very interesting new step in the religiosity of fundamentalist atheism IMO. That said, it seems quite likely to be truly based on the anatomical image - I don't think the conclusion is obvious or follows without further assumptions though. There's a nice juxtaposition here with the argument by design - surely those who would be most desirous of saying that the church commissioners were pwned would also be those who would have to say that an image of a brain could arise by chance and not be designed in at all ... ?

ugh 16y ago
Am I just too stupid to understand you or are you talking gibberish? What’s atheism got to do with this? What’s creationism got to do with this?
- pohl 16y ago
  I think (s)he's suggesting that Michelangelo is a blind watchmaker and we're seeing a brain on some French toast.
  - ugh 16y ago
    Problem with that comparison (seeing Virgin Mary in toast = seeing brain in painting) is only that Michelangelo’s paintings are most definitely a product of intelligent design – no surprise there. If those who see Virgin Mary in a toast would claim that the toaster manufacturer made the toaster so that Virgin Mary would be burnt into toasts I would have no problem with that. That would be a testable hypothesis. It’s just that they don’t. They claim a miracle happened and no amount of evidence could convince them that isn’t the case.
    - pbhjpbhj 16y ago
      >If those who see Virgin Mary in a toast would claim that the toaster manufacturer made the toaster so that Virgin Mary would be burnt into toasts I would have no problem with that. That would be a testable hypothesis. It’s just that they don’t. I guess in those terms a hypothesis could be that the universe is deterministic in some sense and that the image of the Virgin Mary was effectively programmed into the initial state so as to emerge on that piece of toast. Untestable fo' sure.

sesqu 16y ago

While I have previously wondered about the fabric shape, I don't think the similarity is great enough. Unless there is significant variation in brains, the silhouettes differ in way too many places and only really share a couple of major features.

jmount 16y ago

I think you are just hearing what a brain-scientist sees when he/she looks at a cloud.

sesqu 16y ago

Pope Paul IV interpreted Michelangelo’s Last Judgment, painted on the wall of the Sistine Chapel 20 years after completing the ceiling, as defaming the church by suggesting that Jesus and those around him communicated with God directly without need of Church. I don't understand what thought processes are required for a pope to condemn the idea of Jesus making do without the Christian Church. Apparently Pope Paul IV was highly educated and very harsh, and fought Protestants (who had emerged just a few decades earlier). While he understandably didn't want people considering the spiritualist approach to faith, surely he must accept that at least Jesus would have been a spiritualist of some sort? This sounds like cognitive dissonance, and Streisand Effect-y. Must have been a hard time for the church. As for the artwork, I can't see the similarity even with the explanation. They mentioned a plurality of examples, and that might be convincing if shown, but as it stands the single examples are weak.