Osteoarthritis in the hands of Michelangelo Buonarotti

Abstract

"The greatest artist does not have any concept Which a single piece of marble does not itself contain Within its excess, though only A hand that obeys the intellect can discover it." -- Michelangelo Buonarroti, the Sonnets. Michelangelo Buonarroti, one of the greatest artists of all time, represented sublime beauty and remains still unmatched even after five centuries. Near the end of his life, he wisely warned that "No one has mastery before he is at the end of his art and his life". Several organic diseases and various psychological/behavioural disorders have been attributed to Michelangelo. From the analysis of the literature, it is now clear that Michelangelo was afflicted by an illness involving his joints. This interpretation seems corroborated by the vast correspondence with his nephew, Lionardo di Buonarroto Simoni, which reveals that the artist suffered from 'gout', an ill-defined general term of the period, encompassing all arthritic conditions. Michelangelo described the symptoms of his nephrolithiasis, with repeated expulsion of stones, and one dramatic acute obstruction.