"In 1506, Michelangelo--a young but already renowned sculptor--is invited by the sultan of Constantinople to design a bridge over the Golden Horn. As well as an enormous payment, the sultan offwrs him the promise of immortality, since Leonardo da Vinci's design had been rejected: "You will surpass him in glory if you accept, for you will succeed where he has failed, and you will give the world a monument without equal." Michelangelo, after some hesitation, abandons Rome and an irritated Pope Julius II--whose commission he leaves unfinished--and arrives in Constantinople for this truly epic project. As he explores the beauty and wonder of the Ottoman Empire, sketching and describing his impressions along the way, he struggles to create what could be his greatest architectural masterwork." --