Michelangelo's Moses

Walking Tours of Rome

Moses (det.) by Michelangelo

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The ancient church of San Pietro in Vincoli was founded in the 4th century to house the two chains (vincoli), which, allegedly, fettered St Peter when he was incarcerated in Rome. 

Today, most people visit the church not to see St Peter's chains, but to admire Michelangelo’s statue of Moses (1514-16). The celebrated sculpture was carved for the monumental tomb of Pope Julius II (r. 1503-13), which was originally destined to stand in St Peter’s Basilica. However, the statue of Moses, which was placed here in 1544, was the only part of the tomb that Michelangelo ever completed. And the tomb, itself, mostly the work of Michelangelo's pupils, stands not in the grand Basilica di San Pietro in Vaticano, but in San Pietro in Vincoli. 

The statue of Julius II by Tommaso Boscoli is a far cry from what the pope would have wished. 

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Moses by Michelangelo

Tomb of Pope Julius II