Where Is the Statue of David?
Michelangelo's statue of David stands in the Galleria dell'Accademia in Florence, Italy, where it has been since 1873.
The David you see outdoors in the Piazza della Signoria is a marble copy, placed there to mark the spot where the original once stood.
So the crowds photographing the statue in the square are usually photographing a stand in.
The facts
Location: Galleria dell'Accademia, Florence.
There since: 1873, when it was moved indoors.
Original outdoor spot: Piazza della Signoria, now holding a copy.
Height: about 5.17 meters, over 17 feet.
What he holds: a sling over his shoulder and a stone in his hand.
Where it really is
The original lives in the Galleria dell'Accademia, in a room built for it.
A tall tribune with a domed skylight was designed so daylight falls on the marble. The statue has stood at the end of it since 1873.
The copies that fool everyone
There are two famous copies in Florence. One stands outside the Palazzo Vecchio in the Piazza della Signoria, on the David's first home.
A bronze version looks over the city from the Piazzale Michelangelo. Both are worth seeing. Neither is the marble Michelangelo carved.
Why they finally moved it inside
The David spent more than 350 years outdoors, and the weather wore at the marble.
It had already survived worse. During a riot in 1527, a bench thrown from a window broke its left arm into pieces, later reassembled, and to me it is a wonder it survived at all. To protect what was left, Florence brought it indoors in the 1870s.
How big it is, and what he is holding
The figure is about 5.17 meters tall and carved from a single block of Carrara marble weighing several tons.
Michelangelo shows David before the fight, not after. The sling rests over his shoulder, the stone sits in his lowered right hand, and his eyes are fixed on something out of frame.
The weight shifts onto one leg in the pose called contrapposto. Why this one figure became so famous is its own story: why Michelangelo's David is so famous.
The block nobody else wanted
The marble had a history before Michelangelo touched it. Other sculptors had started on it and given up, leaving a tall, narrow, flawed block known in Florence as the Giant.
Michelangelo took it on at 26 and carved the David between 1501 and 1504. The rest of his career is in Michelangelo: The Complete Story.
FAQ about where the David is
Where is the real David? The Galleria dell'Accademia in Florence.
Is the one outside real? No. That is a copy at the original site.
How tall is it? About 5.17 meters, over 17 feet.
What is David holding? A sling over his shoulder and a stone in his hand.
When was it moved indoors? In 1873.
Still a target after 500 years
In 1991 a man walked up to the David with a hammer hidden in his jacket and chipped one of its toes before guards stopped him.
The most famous nude in the world now stands under a glass dome, watched all day, every day, and to me that guard detail says how much it still matters.