Chronological Table
| DATE | IMPORTANT EVENTS | PRINCIPAL WORKS |
| 1475 | March 6. Birth of Michelangelo at Caprese. | |
| 1488 | April 1. He enters the school of Domenico and David Ghirlandajo. | |
| 1489 | He enters the school of Bertoldo and becomes the protégé of Lorenzo de’ Medici. | |
| 1490-1492 | .......... | Mask of a Faun. Madonna of the Stairs. Combat of the Centaurs. |
| 1492 | April 8. Death of Lorenzo de’ Medici. | |
| 1492-1494 | In the service of Piero de’ Medici. | Wooden crucifix. Statue of Hercules. |
| 1494 | October. Flight to Venice and Bologna. He worked at S. Petronio in Bologna. | Angel for the Arca of S. Domenico in Bologna. |
| 1495 | Return to Florence. | Giovannino. Sleeping Love. |
| 1496 | June 25. Arrival in Rome. | Bacchus. Cupid. |
| 1498 | May 23. Savonarola is burned in Florence. | |
| 1498-1500 | .......... | Pietà of St. Peter’s. |
| 1501 | Return to Florence. | Statues for the Piccolomini altar in the cathedral of Sienna. |
| 1501-1505 | .......... | David. Cartoon for the battle of Cascina. Holy Family of Agnolo Doni. Virgin of Bruges. Bas-reliefs of the Madonna for Taddeo Taddei and Bartolommeo Pitti. |
| 1505 | March. He is summoned to Rome by Julius II. | First plan for the tomb of Julius II |
| 1506 | The Laocöon was discovered at Rome. | |
| 1506 | April 17. Flight to Florence. | |
| 1506 | End of November. Reconciliation with Julius at Bologna. | |
| 1506-1508 | .......... | Bronze statue of Julius II at Bologna. |
| 1508 | Return to Rome. | |
| 1508 | May 10 to 1512, October... | Paintings on the ceiling of the Sistine. |
| 1513 | February 21. Death of Julius II. | |
| 1513 | March 11. Election of Leo X. | |
| 1513 | May 6. Second contract for the tomb of Julius II. | |
| 1513-1516 | Michelangelo at Florence. | The Slaves. Moses. |
| 1516 | July. Third contract for the tomb of Julius II. | |
| 1517 | September. Serious illness of Michelangelo. | |
| 1518 | January 19. Contract in regard to the façade of S. Lorenzo in Florence. | |
| 1518-1520 | Michelangelo at the quarries of Carrara, Seravezza. | |
| 1520 | March 10. Michelangelo is released from the contract for the façade of S. Lorenzo by an order from Leo X. | The Christ of the Minerva. |
| 1520 | April 6. Death of Raphael. | |
| 1521 | Beginning of the work on the chapel of the Medici at S. Lorenzo. | The Madonna of the chapel of the Medici. |
| 1521 | At the end of the year serious illness of Michelangelo. | The Victory. |
| 1522 | November 19. Election of Clement VII. | |
| 1524-1526 | .......... | Work on the tomb of the Medici and the Laurentian library. |
| 1527 | May 6. Capture of Rome by the Imperialists. | |
| 1529 | April 6. Michelangelo is named Governatore Generale and Procuratore of the fortifications of Florence. Mission to inspect the fortifications at Pisa, Livorno and Ferrara. | Leda. |
| 1529 | September 21. Flight to Venice. Siege of Florence. | |
| 1529 | November 20. Return to Florence. Defense of San Miniato. | |
| 1530 | August 12. Capitulation of Florence. Proscriptions. | Apollo. |
| 1531 | June. Serious illness of Michelangelo. | Work on the Medici tombs. |
| 1532 | April 29. Fourth contract for the monument of Julius II. | |
| 1533 | Beginning of the friendship with Tommaso dei Cavalieri in Rome. | First plan for the Last Judgment. |
| 1534 | Death in Florence of Lodovico, the father of Michelangelo. | |
| 1534 | September 23. Michelangelo returns to Rome, where he remains until his death. | |
| 1534 | September 25. Death of Clement VII. | |
| 1534 | October 13. Election of Paul III. | |
| 1535 | September 1. Michelangelo is named by order of Paul III architect-in-chief, sculptor and painter of the Apostolic Palace. | |
| 1536 | Beginning of the friendship with Vittoria Colonna at Rome. | |
| 1536 | April to November, 1541... | Last Judgment in the Sistine. |
| 1538 | The statue of Marcus Aurelius is raised on the Capitoline. | Brutus. Drawings of Christ for Vittoria Colonna. |
| 1542-1544 | .......... | Frescoes of the Pauline Chapel. |
| 1542 | August 20. Last agreement for the monument of Julius II. | |
| 1544 | June. Serious illness of Michelangelo, who was cared for in the palace of the Strozzi. | |
| 1545 | February..... | Completion of the monument of Julius II in S. Pietro in Vinculi. |
| 1545-1546 | Titian in Rome. | |
| 1546 | January. Serious illness of Michelangelo. He gives the Slaves to the Strozzi. | Work on the cornice of the Farnese palace. |
| 1547 | January 1. Michelangelo named by Paul III architect of St. Peter’s. | |
| 1547 | February 25. Death of Vittoria Colonna. | Work on the Capitol. |
| 1549 | November 10. Death of Paul III. | |
| 1550 | February 8. Election of Julius III. | Work on the Vigna del Papa Giulio and the reconstruction of the Belvedere stairway. |
| 1551 | First edition of the “Vite” of Vasari. | |
| 1553 | First edition of the life of Michelangelo by Ascanio Condivi. | Work on St. Peter’s. |
| 1555 | March 23. Death of Julius III. | |
| 1555 | May 23. Election of Paul IV. | |
| 1555 | December 3. Death of Urbino, Michelangelo’s servant. | The group of the Pietà, broken by Michelangelo, is continued and completed by Tiberio Calcagni. |
| 1558 | .......... | He works at the model of the dome of St. Peter’s. |
| 1559-1560 | Daniele da Volterra, at the command of Paul IV, paints drapery on the figures of the Last Judgment. | |
| 1560 | Catherine de’ Medici requested Michelangelo to make the statue of Henri II. | Work on the transformation of the Baths of Diocletian into the church of S. Maria degli Angeli. |
| 1561 | August 29. Michelangelo was taken ill. | Work on the Porta Pia. |
| 1563 | January 31. Michelangelo made President of the Academy of Florence. | |
| 1564 | February. | The Rondanini Pietà. |
| 1564 | February 18. Death of Michelangelo. | |
| 1564 | July 14. Funeral at S. Lorenzo in Florence. | |