Engraving Libica or The Libyan Sibyl

Libica or The Libyan Sibyl, by Michelangelo, engraving by Émile Jean Sulpis (1856-1943).

The Libyan Sibyl, or Libica, is one of the nine figures from Genesis painted by Michelangelo for the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. Phemonoe, a Libyan prophetess, has her back to us, seated on a throne, and raises...

Libica or The Libyan Sibyl, by Michelangelo, engraving by Émile Jean Sulpis (1856-1943).

The Libyan Sibyl, or Libica, is one of the nine figures from Genesis painted by Michelangelo for the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. Phemonoe, a Libyan prophetess, has her back to us, seated on a throne, and raises the book of prophecies. The sibyl is depicted in a highly complex posture, captured in a twisting movement. The inclination of her feet, legs, torso, and head creates a serpentine dynamic and attests to the artist's great mastery of anatomy.
Located at the heart of the Apostolic Palace in the Vatican, the Sistine Chapel is one of the masterpieces of the Italian Renaissance. Decorated by Michelangelo between 1508 and 1512, its ceiling unfolds a vast iconographic program, of which the Libyan Sibyl is one of the most remarkable figures.
Thanks to his great technical mastery, the engraver Emile Jean Sulpis succeeds here in rendering through his lines the body's contours, the tension of the muscles, and the folds of the drapery, thereby accentuating the figure's sculptural quality.