As a teenager, Michelangelo Buonarroti worked as an apprentice in Florence, learning to paint frescoes on buildings. But he longed to sculpt.
So one night he sneaked away, found a piece of marble, and with the help of friends carried it to his shop, where he secretly began work on his first sculpture.
For six months he worked on his "Madonna of the Stairs" (shown here), one of his first known works.
The sculpture, which was finished in 1492, broke new artistic ground and foreshadowed Michelangelo's coming greatness. It was the first time a Madonna and Child (Mary with her baby son Jesus) was ever shown with Jesus facing Mary. The pose was revolutionary -- and even provoking -- at the time. It was also one of the first sculptures to have various degrees of finish. The upper left corner is very rough, while other areas are highly polished. Michelangelo perfected this method in his later works.
"Madonna of the Stairs" and several of his other early works do reside in Casa Buonarroti, Michelangelo's quiet little home in Florence.
