MICHELANGELO Buonarroti
(b. 1475, Caprese, d. 1564, Roma)

St Proculus

1494
Marble, height 59 cm with base
San Domenico, Bologna

In 1494 Michelangelo worked on the shrine of St Dominic, for which he carved this statue of St Proculus which echoes Masaccio and Donatello. (The companion statue of St Petronius testifies to Michelangelo's studies of Donatello and Jacopo della Quercia.)

It has often been disputed whether St Proculus should be ascribed to Michelangelo, as his biographer and pupil, Ascanio Condivi, only mentions two figures in Bologna, St Petronius and the Angel with Candlestick. It was probably begun by Niccolò dell' Arca and completed by Michelangelo.