A Visit With Jesus

Ancestors of Christ

Along the lower edges of Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel ceiling, the lunettes and triangular spandrels portray the generations leading to Jesus. The names on the lunettes follow Matthew's genealogy, although the individual painted figures cannot always be identified with certainty.

Select a painting to view its larger image, available details, and historical, biblical, and artistic commentary.

The 14 Lunettes

The lunettes sit above the chapel windows. Their inscriptions trace the generations of Christ through Matthew’s genealogy.

The 8 Spandrels

The triangular spandrels continue the ancestral theme. Their titles identify the lunettes beneath them, rather than claiming to identify the painted figures.

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"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son,
that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life."