When Michelangelo returned to Florence, he was already a celebrity. If the Pietà was Michelangelo’s first “number one hit”, few could have imagined that his next work of sculpture would overshadow it. In fact, the David would arguably also overshadow every other sculpture in history! But almost as soon as he finished carving the giant statue, Michelangelo was asked to test his genius against Leonardo da Vinci as each was asked to paint a giant battle mural in the great hall of the Palazzo Vecchio in Florence.

The Florentine Republic Part II: The Battle of Cascina and the Doni Tondo

Readings: pgs. 62-71