"Isaiah the Prophet"
The Prophet Isaiah is one of the seven Old Testament prophets painted by the Italian master Michelangelo (c. 1511) on the Sistine Chapel ceiling. The Sistine Chapel is in Vatican Palace, in the Vatican City.
This particular fresco figure is painted fourth on the right from the side of the High Altar. Isaiah's cloak swirls around him and the colors in the portrayal are cool and luminous. The figure holds a distinctive blue book to his side, perhaps a depiction of the biblical Book of Isaiah.
This painting has been held in particularly high regard by critics. Vasari said of it: "Anyone who studies this figure, copied so faithfully from nature, the true mother of the art of painting, will find a beautifully composed work capable of teaching in full measure all the precepts to be followed by a good painter".