Ancestors of Christ: figures
Artist: Michelangelo- Sistine Chapel
1511
This spandrel is associated with the lunette naming Salmon, Boaz, and Obed, generations linking Israel's settlement in Canaan with the family of King David. Their history includes the story of Ruth, whose marriage to Boaz became an important part of the Davidic ancestry. Michelangelo included these generations among the Ancestors of Christ, using the triangular spandrel to continue the sequence of families represented around the lower edges of the Sistine Chapel ceiling.
Matthew 1:5 identifies Salmon as the father of Boaz, whose mother was Rahab. Boaz married Ruth, a Moabite widow who had joined herself to the people of Israel. Their son Obed became the father of Jesse and grandfather of King David (Ruth 4:13-22). This family history is especially significant because it includes women from outside Israel who became part of the ancestry of Jesus. The spandrel recalls the generations through which the Davidic family emerged, although its painted figures cannot be securely identified as Salmon, Boaz, Obed, or other members of their families.
Michelangelo used the triangular space of the spandrel to create an intimate arrangement of human figures. Their attitudes and relationships suggest the ordinary experiences of family life rather than a specific event from the Book of Ruth. The painting forms part of the ancestral sequence surrounding the chapel, where quieter domestic scenes contrast with the monumental prophets and the dramatic Genesis narratives above. Its association with the Salmon, Boaz, and Obed lunette connects the visual theme of family generations with the biblical ancestry of David and Jesus.
