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elleng

(135,848 posts)
Fri Oct 6, 2023, 11:27 PM Oct 2023

The 17-foot-tall, 12,000-pound marble masterpiece by Michelangelo Buonarroti, was unveiled

to the public in Florence on "ThisDayInHistory" in 1504. “David” was carved from a single block of white Italian Carrara marble that was rejected by other artists for being flawed.

A committee of artists decided on the statue’s location, outside Florence’s town hall. It reportedly took 40 men 4 days to move the massive statue half a mile from Michelangelo’s studio to the piazza.

In 1873, after almost 400 years, “David” was moved indoors.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_(Michelangelo)

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The 17-foot-tall, 12,000-pound marble masterpiece by Michelangelo Buonarroti, was unveiled (Original Post) elleng Oct 2023 OP
This message was self-deleted by its author ZZenith Oct 2023 #1
That's quite a work of art... dchill Oct 2023 #2
400 years outside with no pants? LudwigPastorius Oct 2023 #3
And it also explains the shrinkage Sky Jewels Oct 2023 #4
! LudwigPastorius Oct 2023 #6
Ha ha! Sky Jewels Oct 2023 #7
I read The Agony and the Ecstasy when ggma Oct 2023 #5

Response to elleng (Original post)

Sky Jewels

(8,819 posts)
7. Ha ha!
Sat Oct 7, 2023, 01:45 PM
Oct 2023

I love that gif. Beaker!

I actually Googled "why do statues like Michelangelo's David have small penises?" The answer is that they were influenced by Greek art, and in ancient Greek culture small penises were considered better than larger ones because they were a sign of being a civil, intelligent person and not a brutish, animalistic type of guy.

https://www.irishtimes.com/culture/why-the-ancient-greeks-didn-t-make-a-big-deal-of-penis-size-1.3953929

Michelangelo’s David’s is, for instance, surprisingly small. One reason is that in ancient Greece, which is the inspiration and source for a great deal of Renaissance art, a large penis wasn’t something to shout about. Instead, a smaller size was associated with good citizenry and intellectual pursuits. Scholars have also posited that Michelangelo, ever keen on exactitude, created his David diminished due to the natural fear of facing off against Goliath.


ggma

(711 posts)
5. I read The Agony and the Ecstasy when
Sat Oct 7, 2023, 05:44 AM
Oct 2023

I was fifteen and the book claimed that he looked at the block of marble and could see the sculpture; it's why his hip is canted and his arm is up - to accommodate the flaw in the block. Great book.

gg

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