The Creation of Adam

Michelangelo painted The Creation of Adam on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel around 1512, and the image of two hands reaching toward each other has become one of the most replicated religious images in history. God, wrapped in a billowing cloak and surrounded by angels, extends his right hand toward Adam, who reclines on earth with his left arm loosely raised. Their fingers nearly touch but don't quite meet.

The fresco is part of a larger cycle depicting scenes from Genesis, running the length of the chapel ceiling. Michelangelo worked on scaffolding for four years, painting largely without assistants and reportedly in considerable physical discomfort. The Creation of Adam shows his mastery of the human form: Adam's idealized body displays the anatomical knowledge that made Michelangelo the supreme sculptor of the Renaissance.

Some modern scholars have noted that the shape of God's cloak resembles a human brain, suggesting Michelangelo may have included a hidden anatomical reference. Whether intentional or not, the observation speaks to the painting's endless capacity to generate interpretation. The original can only be seen at the Vatican Museums in Rome.