VOA文化艺术2023--Michelangelo's 'Secret Room' to Open for Visitors

Michelangelo's 'Secret Room' to Open for Visitors

Visitors will soon be able to see a long-hidden space inside the Medici Chapel¹ in the Italian city of Florence. The walls of the small space contain drawings that some experts believe may have been created by the famous artist Michelangelo.

The secret room is small – 10 meters by 3 meters. Officials discovered the room in 1975 when searching for a way to make a new exit from Medici Chapel.

The museum's then-director Paolo Dal Poggetto strongly believed that the drawings were by Michelangelo, said the current director, Paola D'Agostino. A debate over the issue began then and continues to this day.

D'Agostino suggested that experts of Michelangelo's drawings did not believe he created the works at the time of their discovery 50 years ago. She added, "Others had a more moderate view, in the sense they thought that some could be by Michelangelo and others could be by followers². So the debate is ongoing³."

The room was used to store coal until 1955. Then it was closed and forgotten for years below a special kind of opening known as a trapdoor. The trapdoor was hidden beneath furniture. The drawings themselves were discovered under two layers of plaster – a substance used to make walls and ceilings smooth.

Dal Poggetto believed Michelangelo hid in the space to escape the anger of Pope Clement⁴ VII. The artist had supported a short-lived republic that overthrew⁵ the Medicis.

In the room, the artist drew for some of his projects. They include drawings believed to be the legs of Giuliano de' Medici.

Starting on November 15, small groups of four people will be able to visit the room for about 15 minutes. Visitors will have to pay an additional $20 on top of the $10 charged for entry to the main museum.

The museum said it limits the number of visitors because of the need to reduce exposure of the artworks to light. At most, 100 visitors will be able to go to the room each week.

Words in This Story

furniture – n. chairs, tables, beds, etc.

 

exposure – n. the fact or condition of being affected by something or experiencing something

1 chapel   

n.小教堂，殡仪馆

参考例句：

• The nimble hero,skipped into a chapel that stood near.敏捷的英雄跳进近旁的一座小教堂里。
• She was on the peak that Sunday afternoon when she played in chapel.那个星期天的下午，她在小教堂的演出，可以说是登峰造极。

2 followers   

追随者( follower的名词复数 )； 用户； 契据的附面； 从动件

参考例句：

• the followers of Mahatma Gandhi 圣雄甘地的拥护者
• The reformer soon gathered a band of followers round him. 改革者很快就获得一群追随者支持他。

3 ongoing   

adj.进行中的，前进的

参考例句：

• The problem is ongoing.这个问题尚未解决。
• The issues raised in the report relate directly to Age Concern's ongoing work in this area.报告中提出的问题与“关心老人”组织在这方面正在做的工作有直接的关系。

4 clement   

adj.仁慈的；温和的

参考例句：

• A clement judge reduced his sentence.一位仁慈的法官为他减了刑。
• The planet's history contains many less stable and clement eras than the holocene.地球的历史包含着许多不如全新世稳定与温和的地质时期。

5 overthrew   

overthrow的过去式

参考例句：

• The people finally rose up and overthrew the reactionary regime. 人们终于起来把反动的政权推翻了。
• They overthrew their King. 他们推翻了国王。