MIT Libraries homeDome

General view of the chapel, from the entry; Another important early commission (1581) from the Cardinal was a chapel at S Maria Maggiore for relics of the crib of Bethlehem. The Sistine Chapel (or chapel of the Holy Sacrament), in the north transept, was founded in 1585 by Sixtus V and designed by Domenico Fontana. Constructed during the pontificate, the magnificently decorated Sistine Chapel contains the tombs of Sixtus V and Pius V, also designed by Fontana. Source: Grove Art Online; http://www.groveart.com/ (accessed 2/14/2008)