Student no. 12303984 Why did Michelangelo’s projects for the tomb of Julius II fail between 1505 and the compleon of the monument in 1545? ‘Io mi trovo aver perduta tua la mia giovinezza, legato a questa sepultura.’ Michelangelo 1 Fig. 1 The purpose of this essay is to analyse the reasons that led to what Condivi called ‘the tragedy of the tomb’ when referring to the development of Michelangelo’s project for the tomb for Pope Julius II. 2 This definion hints at the tumultuous history of the 1 ‘I find myself having lost my enre youth ed to this tomb.’ G. Milanesi, Le leere di Michelangelo Buonarro edite ed ineditecoi ricordi ed i contra arsci . in De Tolnay, p. 3 2 When describing the circumstances leading to the devising of the second, curtailed project, Condivi writes: ‘So Michelangelo entered once again upon the tragedy of the tomb, which turned out no more happily for him than the first one; indeed, it turned out far worse …’. Condivi, p. 59 1