Florence Medici Chapels

Within the monumental complex of San Lorenzo, the Medici Chapels are part of a project conceived in 1520, when Michelangelo started work on the New Sacristy of the Basilica di San Lorenzo. The Medici Chapels were commissioned by Cardinal Giulio de'Medici (who was to become Pope Clemente VII), as a mausoleum for certain members of the family, such as Lorenzo il Magnifico, Giuliano, Lorenzo, the Duke of Nemours and the Duke of Urbino.

The sculptures on the sarcophaguses in the chapels are of great importance. These sculptures portray the allegories of the "Dawn and the Sunset", the "Day and the Night" and the complex of the "Madonna and Child". A great number of interpretations exist concerning the elaborate symbolism within the structures; for example the tombs might refer to the liberation of the soul after death, a concept which could be linked to Michelangelo if one considers the what we know of his spirituality, whilst the statues on the sarcophagus are probably linked to the various phases of human life.