Since April 28, the Sistine Chapel has been closed to the public while the Cité du Vatican is preparing to welcome the 135 cardinals for the conclave, the pope’s election, which will start on May 7. This follows the death of Pope Francis, who died on April 21 at the age of 88.
The Vatican has not announced a date for the reopening of the chapel, because the conclave has no fixed duration. Latin cum clave (with key), that is to say in a closed room, the conclave etymology implies the isolation imposed on voters during the process.
This tradition of confining the cardinals dates back to the 13th century, when an election of almost three years took place in Viterbe, in central Italy. Exasperated by its length, the population of the city imprisoned the cardinals in 1268 in the pontifical palace. In 1270, the roof was removed to expose them to bad weather. Finally elected in 1271, Grégoire X establishes the Apostolic Constitution Ubi Périciwhich officially establishes the conclave and fixes the strict rules. From now on, these will be locked up and forced, if a decision is not made after eight days, to eat only bread, wine and water. The rules have since been relaxed.
In 1483, the Sistine Chapel was consecrated and welcomed the first elections in 1492. But it was not until 1878 that it became the official place of the conclaves, under Pope Leon XIII. This change is partly due to the taking of Rome by the Italian army in 1870, which ended pontifical states. The Palais du Quirinal, a former apostolic palace, is confiscated. The Vatican is chosen: the law of guarantees of 1871 recognized the Pope with the property of the Vatican, but without giving it sovereignty over these territories. The Vatican only became a sovereign state with the Latran agreements in 1929.
The conclave begins between 15ᵉ and 20ᵉ day after the death or renunciation of the Pope. The day fixed, the cardinals, who must be under 80 years old, celebrate a mass in Saint-Pierre, then enter the procession in the Sistine Chapel where they take an oath to respect the rules of the conclave. If no pope is elected after four days, a day of prayer and reflection is planned, followed by cycles of elections that can be repeated twice. According to the current rules, a majority of two thirds of the votes must be obtained to be elected Pope, regardless of the number of ballot towers. The elections therefore continue until a candidate reaches this threshold. However, a conclave should not exceed a fortnight. The conclave of François, in 2013, lasted two days for example.
After each vote, the bulletins are burned: black smoke indicates that no pope has been elected, white smoke announces the election of a new pope. During the conclave, the cardinals sleep at the Sainte-Marthe residence, located in the heart of the Vatican.
Visitors to the Vatican museums, Rome.
© Photo Ludovic Sanejouand
When closing the Sistine Chapel, the other sections of the Vatican museums remain accessible to visitors, without modifying the standard entry rate, set at 20 euros. This unique post includes all open spaces, but the absence of the Sistine Chapel could influence the behavior of tourists in the Vatican, which are 10,000 to 20,000 per day. The Vatican gardens, usually included in the course, are closed for security reasons.
Built between 1477 and 1483 under Pope Sixtus IV, the Sistine Chapel was first decorated by artists such as Botticelli, Pérugin, Ghirlandio and Rosselli. Pope Jules II entrusted in 1508 to Michelangelo the realization of the ceiling, completed in 1512, which represents nine scenes from Genesis, of which The creation of Adam. Later, at the request of Pope Clément VII, then Paul III, Michelangelo also painted the Last Judgment On the altar wall, between 1536 and 1541.
