The Cappella Maggiore, the Greater Chapel, was recorded as existing in 1368. It was later demolished to make way for the present Sistine Chapel.

The Sistine Chapel originated from the Magna Chapel, also known as the Domini Pape Chapel, mentioned in Giannozzo Manetti's biography of Pope Nicholas V in 1455. It was located in the Vatican garden called 'paradise' and had self-supporting walls made of oblong bricks on three levels.

The construction of the Sistine Chapel was commissioned by Pope Sixtus IV in 1471 as part of a project to recover monuments abandoned during the Avignon captivity.

The construction of the Sistine Chapel began in 1473 under the patronage of Pope Sixtus IV. The chapel's exterior is characterized by its lack of decorative details and the necessity of large buttresses due to subsidence and cracking of masonry.

The demolition of the Magna Chapel began during the second half of 1475 to make way for the construction of the Sistine Chapel. The decision was made to keep the medieval walls up to a certain height.

The construction of the Sistine Chapel began in 1476 after the demolition of the Magna Chapel. The project included strengthening the walls with a brick curtain.

The real reconstruction interventions of the Sistine Chapel began in 1477 and lasted about 4 years.

Pope Sixtus IV commissioned the cycles of paintings, The Life of Moses and The Life of Christ, in 1480 for the Sistine Chapel. The frescos were executed by artists such as Domenico Ghirlandaio, Sandro Botticelli, Pietro Perugino, and Cosimo Rosselli.

During the decoration of the Sistine Chapel, renowned artists such as Perugino, Ghirlandaio, Botticelli, and Rosselli contributed to the frescoes, showcasing a collaboration of artistic talents.

Pope Sixtus IV summoned many artists, including Boticelli, to paint the walls of the Sistine Chapel. Boticelli painted 'Temptations of Christ,' 'Punishment of the Rebels,' and 'Trial of Moses.'

The pictorial interior decoration of the Sistine Chapel began around the second half of 1481 and was completed by at least mid-May 1482. Andreas Trapezuntius, the private secretary of Pope Sixtus IV, described the chapel as complete by the summer of 1482.

The first mass in the Sistine Chapel took place on August 15, 1483, during the feast of the Assumption of the Virgin. The chapel was consecrated and dedicated to the Virgin Mary.

The first papal conclave held in the Sistine Chapel took place from 6 to 11 August 1492, resulting in the election of Pope Alexander VI, also known as Rodrigo Borja.

Michelangelo painted the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel with bright colors, depicting various biblical scenes such as the ancestors of Christ, prophets, and stories from the Book of Genesis. Originally commissioned to paint only twelve figures, he ended up painting over three hundred figures.

The Creation of Adam is a detail of the ceiling fresco painted by Michelangelo between 1508 and 1512 in the Sistine Chapel in Vatican City.

Raphael included Michelangelo's likeness in the School of Athens fresco, inspired by the genius of the Sistine Chapel. The seated pose of Heraclitus in the artwork is influenced by Michelangelo's figures from the Sistine Chapel ceiling.

Michelangelo depicted the Libyan Sibyl on the Sistine Chapel ceiling in a powerful and imposing manner, combining grace and harmony of proportion. The fresco showcases the artist's skill in portraying the figure with deceptive ease, influencing Mannerist artists.

In 1512, Michelangelo unveiled his ceiling frescoes in the Sistine Chapel, which revolutionized the art world with his brilliant figures and use of color. The frescoes depict various scenes, including the creation of the world and the salvation of the Jewish people.

Commissioned by Pope Leo X, Raphael designed a series of ten tapestries depicting events from the Life of St. Peter and the Life of St. Paul to hang around the lower tier of the walls in the Sistine Chapel.

On Christmas day in 1522, the lintel of the east wall collapsed due to unstable foundations, narrowly missing Pope Hadrian VI but resulting in the death of a Swiss guard.

In 1533, Pope Clement VII de' Medici assigned Michelangelo the task of painting the Last Judgement on the altar wall of the Sistine Chapel. This decision led to the alteration of the previous 15th-century frescoes in the chapel.

Pope Clement VII commissioned Michelangelo to paint a fresco in the Sistine Chapel in 1534, which later became known as The Last Judgment.

Decades after the Sistine Chapel ceiling, Michelangelo painted the 'Last Judgment' on the back wall of the chapel, depicting a darker and more pessimistic view compared to the earlier work.

In 1565, Daniele da Volterra, also known as Daniele Ricciarelli, was responsible for adding drapes and fig leaves to cover the naked figures in the Sistine Chapel.

Since 1878, the Sistine Chapel has been used as the location for the Conclave, the assembly that elects the new Pope.

A significant restoration of the Sistine Chapel commenced in 1980, lasting 14 years. The restoration involved reattaching frescoes, cleaning the artwork, and controversially removing some additions made to Michelangelo's original work.

The restoration of the Sistine Chapel's ceiling, painted by Michelangelo, began on November 7, 1984. The process sparked fear and controversy as the original intent of the artist was feared to be altered by the cleaning techniques.

A 10-year-long cleaning and restoration process of the Sistine Ceiling was completed in 1989, removing centuries' accumulation of dirt, smoke, and varnish, revealing the true beauty of Michelangelo's frescoes.

In 1990, physicians suggested that some of Michelangelo's paintings in the Sistine Chapel, such as 'The Creation of Adam,' contain anatomically correct images, like the shape of a human brain. This theory adds another layer of complexity to the interpretation of the artwork.

On April 8, 1994, during a Holy Mass, Pope John Paul II emphasized the sacredness of the Sistine Chapel after the completion of the restoration of the Last Judgement frescoes. The paintings in the chapel serve to make the truths expressed in the Holy Scriptures more understandable.

During a conclave to preserve the Sistine Chapel's marble floor, carpenters installed a slightly elevated wooden floor and a wooden ramp at the entrance for Cardinals needing wheelchair access.

The Conclave of 2013 took place in the Sistine Chapel where Cardinal Bergoglio was elected as Pope Francis I after the resignation of Benedict XVI.

Canadian violinist Rosemary Siemens became the first solo instrumentalist to perform at the Sistine Chapel on February 19, 2014. She performed alongside other musicians for an event called Spiritual Elevation, including hymns like 'Amazing Grace' and 'Be Thou My Vision'.

On April 29, 2016, The Edge from the band U2 performed at the Sistine Chapel, becoming the first rock artist to do so. The concert was part of a conference on regenerative medicines and included songs like 'Walk On' and 'Ordinary Love' by U2.

A full-size architectural and photographic replica of the Sistine Chapel ceiling was displayed in Mexico City from 1 June to 15 July 2016. It took 2.6 million high definition photographs to reproduce the frescoes and tapestries, with a video explaining the history of the chapel to visitors.

In 2017, Cecilia Bartoli made history by being the first woman to perform alongside the all-male Sistine Chapel Choir. She sang 'Beata Viscera' by medieval composer Pérotin.

The first ever live-streamed concert at the Sistine Chapel occurred on April 22, 2018, featuring a performance by the British Choir group The Sixteen and Britten Sinfonia. They played James MacMillian's version of the Stabat Mater.

In February 2020, on the occasion of the fifth centenary of Raphael’s death, the tapestries were reinstalled in their original location in the Sistine Chapel, where they were admired by the public during visits.