Neoclassical sculpture "Dying Slave" (1513) by Michelangelo Buonarroti, reduced to artificial marble

Michelangelo created this life-size figure on the direct commission of Pope Julius II, who granted the artist complete creative freedom. Michelangelo crafted a symbol of humanity's earthly constraints and the freedom of art: despite its diverse and expressive gestures, the figure cannot escape the block of marble. It remains a slave to its existence. However, the great freedom with which Michelangelo sculpted every fiber of the body and its almost voluptuous movement convey a different message: though humanity may be bound, the spirit and art are free! Alongside "David," it is arguably "The Dying Slave" that established Michelangelo's legendary reputation.