Things you didn't know about the statue of David

The statue of David is one of the greatest works of Michelangelo, an Italian Renaissance painting master.

Artworks rarely exist for decades without a few interesting stories surrounding them - the statue of David is no exception. Since Michelangelo first chose the stone to create, until today, the world-famous marble work is hidden inside interesting stories that you may not have heard of.

The statue of David is carved from scrap marble

The nearly 5.2m tall statue we know today almost did not exist.

In 1464, a statue of the hero David in the Bible was ordered to decorate the church of Florence. The original plan was to use a series of statues depicting both mythological figures and biblical figures to adorn the church. Agostino di Duccio, a student of Donatello, was tasked with carving the statue of David, the famous hero who fought Goliath.

Agostino chose a huge marble block for his statue, but he ended up making only a small portion of David's feet. The church decoration committee hired Antonio Rossellino to take Agostino's place. But after seeing the marble block that her predecessor had chosen, Rossellino said it was too low quality to continue.

And so the abandoned rock had to stand outside, untouched, for at least 25 years, until 1501. It was so worn out by the weather that many people looked at it only to click their tongue. However, at the age of 26, Michelangelo accepted the job of sculpting David from this raw material block. He planned to finish it within two years, but it wasn't until 1504 that he finished work. Even so, Michelangelo's sculpting of the legendary David is truly a respectable achievement: many analysts today, after reviewing the marble, have come to the conclusion that it is indeed of low quality. including deformation and wear and tear after years of forgetting.

People plan to put the statue of David on the roof

The commission ordered the statue of David to plan on placing it on the roof, along with the others. However, those statues are made from lighter materials, such as earthenware. Needless to say, the nearly 5.2-meter-tall marble "David" was too heavy to stand on the roof of the church after it was completed by Michelangelo.

Replica of the statue of David in front of the Palazzo Vecchio.

The statue of David was then placed at a lower position, perhaps in part because the finished work was so impressive, that even if the sculpted masterpiece was to be placed on the roof, it would be an unacceptable waste. receive.

Finally, the statue of David is placed at the entrance to the Palazzo Vecchio, the town hall of Florence. However, in 1873, the statue was moved to an art gallery. You can still see a copy of it at Palazzo Vecchio, but even though it looks convincing, it's still not real.

The statue of David is out of proportion

If you look closely, you'll notice that David's right hand looks strangely large. His head is also slightly larger than usual, and the details of his face seem to have been exaggerated. Some art historians believe that the reason may be because the statue was originally intended to be placed on the roof, so Michelangelo tweaked the proportions to match the view of the viewer standing below. Others believe these unrealistic details are to symbolize David's strength or youth.

This statue also has a narrower breadth than most of Michelangelo's other works. The sculptures of this artist are usually large and muscular, and David is quite slender. Historians believe it was because of the marble block Michelangelo used that was narrower than the raw material he often chose.

The problem is more complicated when David's eyes seem a bit . squint (or "squint"). And one more thing that catches our eye is . his treasures are a bit small by the standards. In fact, this is nothing to laugh at, since there is historical evidence that the ancient Greeks viewed those with small treasures as more attractive than those with big treasures.

Although many people view the statue of David as a symbol of perfection like the Greek statues that inspired it, upon closer inspection, you will discover a lot of inconsistencies. Although we may never understand the motive for Michelangelo sculpting David in the way he did it, as with many works of art, its "imperfection" is exactly what makes the painting itself. Statues become interesting.

The statue of David is out of balance

It is almost certain that Michelangelo deliberately sculpted a statue of David that is disproportionate to the actual proportions. However, not everyone knows that the statue itself is a bit out of balance - and this seems to be due to design flaws.

David's center of gravity does not coincide with the center of the base, so that even if the base of the statue were balanced, its mass was unevenly distributed. This puts pressure on the ankles - one of the weakest parts of the statue. If the statue is tilted even slightly, the pressure on the ankle will be greatly increased. In fact, the ankle part of the statue of David has appeared many cracks!

For years, the statue has been tilted, and that seems to have caused the ankle to crack. (When David was still in the town hall of Florence, everyone found it a little inclined.) It is said that a lightning strike hit David in 1511, causing it to tilt. However, the higher possibility that the underlying ground movement due to natural causes (Florence is located near many active geological fault lines) has pulled the focus of the moving object.

David is not always naked

When David was sculpted, public nudity was not as accepted as it is today, including in the form of art. Michelangelo's David is one of the first nude statues in Europe we've known since ancient times. Even so, the authorities in Florence placed a few bronze leaves around his waist when the statue was announced. This "veil" remained there until the mid-1500s.

A copy of the statue given to Queen Victoria in 1857 was also covered by the sensitive area with a plaster fig leaves, so that the queen and her guests do not have to see the statue naked. Then, in 1995, the authorities in Jerusalem refused to accept a copy of David as a gift, because they thought residents would not be pleased with David's revealing appearance.

The statue has political significance

For many people, the politics of the David statue revolves around this Bible story of this character. But for Michelangelo, the statue is also a political statement. Some people perceive the distorted details on the statue as a safe way for Michelangelo to comment on Florence's political situation.

When David was carved, Florence was under the rule of the Medici Family, a feudal family emerging from the banking industry. This family loved art and contributed to arousing the Renaissance. In fact, the Medici Family has supported Michelangelo since he was a novice painter at the age of 13.

However, Michelangelo had a complicated relationship with the Medici Family. In the Bible, David is famous for defeating Goliath. Many people think of David as Michelangelo's way of visualizing Florence's uprising in order to overthrow the Medici family, mainly because he carved the statue when the family was exiled. Then, in 1527, Michelangelo designed many military fortresses to help prevent the Medici from invading Florence.

The original David statue in the museum.

A gang of thugs attacked David in 1527

In 1527, a gang of thugs attacked Florence town hall and the statue of David, throwing everything in sight out of the window.

David was hit by a heavy bench during the riot, breaking his left arm. However, this arm was later repaired, like many of the smaller damage traces accumulated on the statue over the years.

It was attacked again in 1991

David was surprised to survive through many turbulent waves throughout the centuries. However, a surprise attack in 1991 - long after it "moved house" into the museum - damaged the statue.

A guy with a hammer broke into the Florence museum, breaking part of David's toes before the authorities stopped him. When asked why he attacked, he said the model in a 16th-century painting told him to do so. In 2005, the same guy went on to attack a commemorative medal in Florence with a spray of paint because it contained "a sentence with no meaning at all".

Luckily, every broken piece of the toe was collected enough, and the statue was completely repaired. But amidst assaults, earthquakes, and other unpredictable events, David's future remains uncertain - and indeed, the fact that a statue is carved out of a rock is unpopular. and being worn down by so many elements that still exist so perfectly to this day is an impressive feat already!

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