The Annunciation by Michelangelo

The Annunciation is probably Michelangelo's final drawing. It lacked the clear and precise definition of his earlier sketches, such as Pieta drawing. This sketch was drawn when Michelangelo was aged around 85, so perhaps the vagueness of the lines can be attributed to a certain physical frailty-his biographies record various illnesses that plagued him in his final years. The Annunciation is a simple composition, showing the Virgin Mary leaning against a block, her face turned towards Gabriel, who flies by her side whispering in her ear.

Mary, like the figures in The Last Judgment, is heavy and solid, not like the fine-featured young woman carved in the Pieta in St Peter's. The outline of Mary has been traced repeatedly as the artist attempted to find the form that he envisioned. Earlier placements put Mary to the right of the picture, and these lines, still visible, form an echo of her figure as if she was moving towards Gabriel. Michelangelo destroyed many of his sketches in later years, often in anger that he was unable to transfer the image in his mind onto paper adequately.