Statue of David

There is no shortage of “David” statues in Florence, but if you want to see the real thing—the one that inspired all the copies—you've got to go to the Galleria dell'Accademia, or Accademia Gallery. It was custom built to showcase Michelangelo's masterpiece, and it does so beautifully.
Michelangelo's “David” was carved from 1501 to 1504 and originally stood at the entrance of the Palazzo Vecchio on the Piazza della Signoria. Not long after the statue was unveiled, a particularly rowdy fight taking place in the Palazzo led to a chair getting thrown out of a window—directly onto the David's arm, which broke in three places. The statue was moved to its present home in 1873 to further protect it from damage, and a replica was placed outside the Palazzo Vecchio in the spot where the original first stood.
The marble Michelangelo was given to work with for this statue was imperfect and had already been partly carved by his predecessor, but the artist managed to get more out of the marble than anyone thought possible. Although this statue was meant to adorn the Florence Duomo, it was determined that the statue would be too heavy to hoist onto the caethedral, which lead to David finding its home in the Piazza della Signoria.

Practical Info

The Accademia Gallery is open Tuesday through Sunday from 8:15 a.m. until 6:50 p.m., with the last tickets sold at 6:20 p.m. A regular adult ticket costs €6.50. During high season, lines can be quite long to get in, so to save time you can book a ticket in advance or join a tour that includes skip-the-line access. While inside, don't miss the other Michelangelo statues in the short hallway leading to the Statue of David.