Outside the entrance to Palazzo Vecchio stands the marble statue of David. To celebrate the Florentine Republic, Michelangelo was commissioned in 1501 to create a statue, now famously known as David. The biblical hero of David was to become the symbol of freedom for Florentine institutions. The statue was moved to the Academia Gallery in 1873.
The statue which now stands outside the Palazzo Vecchio is a marble copy which was erected in 1910.