Pauline Chapel

The Cappella Paolina is a private papal chapel inside the Apostolic Palace, separated from the Sistine Chapel only by the Sala Regia. It was built from 1537 under Pope Paul III Farnese by Antonio da Sangallo the Younger. The chapel is famous for Michelangelo's two final frescoes - the "Conversion of Saul" and the "Crucifixion of Peter" - painted between 1542 and 1550. To this day the chapel is reserved for the Pope's private devotions and remains closed to the public. Anyone hoping to see the frescoes has to rely on high-resolution reproductions and the detailed restoration documentation published by the Vatican Museums after the work completed in 2009.