MICHELANGELO Buonarroti
(b. 1475, Caprese, d. 1564, Roma)

Slave (rebelling)

c. 1513
Marble, height 229 cm
Musée du Louvre, Paris

This captive, known as the Rebellious Slave struggles against the bands that restrain his torso and arms. Although prefigured by some of the nudes on the Sistine ceiling, this figure seems anguished, and his forms have lost the resiliency of youth. The face, unfinished, held less interest for the artist than the body. With its backward twist and rolling eyes, the figure suggest the ancient sculpture of the Laocoön, but the mouth is closed.




© Web Gallery of Art, created by Emil Krén and Daniel Marx.