Donatello's bronze David, created around 1440-1460, stands as a revolutionary masterpiece that marked the revival of free-standing nude sculpture since antiquity, while simultaneously challenging conventional notions of heroic masculinity through its provocative embrace of feminine beauty.

The work depicts the biblical hero as a contemplative young man standing over Goliath's severed head, but rather than presenting a traditional warrior, Donatello rendered David with a smooth, effeminate body - an almost androgynous physique that hovers between adolescent boy and idealized feminine form. This gender fluidity is heightened by the sculpture's sensual surface treatment and languid pose. David's mysterious smile, downcast gaze, and introspective stance evoke vulnerability and erotic contemplation rather than triumphant victory, creating an ambiguous narrative that has puzzled scholars for centuries.

What makes this sculpture particularly groundbreaking is how its classical contrapposto pose and naturalistic proportions serve not just to revive ancient artistic traditions, but to destabilize viewers' expectations about heroism, sexuality, and power through its deliberate blurring of gender boundaries. As the first major nude sculpture of the Renaissance, this bronze David established Donatello as a master who could combine technical innovation with profound psychological complexity, creating a work that transcends simple biblical narrative to explore the fluid nature of human identity and desire in ways that wouldn't be fully understood or accepted until much later periods.

Donatello's Bronze David is on view at the Bargello Museum, which we highly recommend.