What Is The Purpose Of The Pieta By Michelangelo

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The Pieta (1498-1500) was carved by Michelangelo out of Carrara marble. Jean de Bilheres asked Michelangelo to create a sculpture to go inside a chapel at Old St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome and therefore, the Pieta was formed. The Pieta shows a scene of Mary holding her son Jesus, in her arms after he’d been crucified and removed from the cross but not before he was put in the tomb. When looking at the sculpture you’ll notice that the proportions of Mary’s body are larger than that of her son’s and if she were to stand up she would tower over her son. There is a diagonal band on Mary’s torso where Michelangelo signed his work. It is believed that he heard people credit his work to another artist and that is why he carved his name into The Pieta.