Museo delle Cappelle Medicee, Florence

The Medici Chapels are historical labors that are as grand in their own way as are the pyramids of Egypt. Started in 1605, these shrines were under construction for centuries. 85 years earlier, Michelangelo was tasked to design and build the New Sacristy from one of the Medici cardinals, Giulio de' Medici, dedicated to the memory of Giuliano (Duke of Nemours) and Lorenzo (Duke of Urbino). The bodies of several other Medici family members are interred in the Cappelle Medicee, most notably Lorenzo the Magnificent, Giuliano de' Medici and all of the Grand Dukes of Tuscany. Typical of a spiritual leader, he was obsessed with the here-after and the creation of these intricate chapels testifies to that. Of artistic note, are the actual charcoal sketches by Michelangelo's own hand.