Bearded Head in Profile (recto)
by MICHELANGELO Buonarroti, Black chalk, 435 x 276 mm
The facial features of the bearded head represented on this sheet are related to the head of Prophet Zechariah, whom Michelangelo painted on the narrow side of the ceiling, directly above the main entrance of the Sistine Chapel. The face in the drawing is roughly outlined and rendered in an extremely economical manner with a few parallel lines.
The studies of knee joints and legs on both sides of the sheet are also related to the ceiling frescoes.