Michelangelo's Pietà sculpture

The Pietà is a world-renowned masterpiece of Renaissance sculpture by Michelangelo Buonarroti, housed in St. Peter's Basilica, Vatican City. Carved between 1498 and 1499 from a single block of white Carrara marble, the statue depicts the body of Jesus on the lap of his mother Mary after the Crucifixion. It is a unique work as it is the only piece Michelangelo ever signed.

Originally commissioned by the French Cardinal Jean de Bilhères for his funeral monument, the sculpture was moved to its current location in the 18th century. As a work of religious art located within the sovereign territory of the Holy See, it is under the permanent stewardship of the Catholic Church. It remains one of the most finish and significant works in the history of Western art, representing a pinnacle of Florentine Renaissance craftsmanship.