e is ready to move. The body language of St. George suggests a person ready for battle. The face and pose of St. George is very vivid and controlled that is compared to the classical Greek and Roman sculptures. By the time Donatello was in his late thirties, wealthy people were buying his sculptures. The Medici family of Florence commissioned most of his works. The Medicis dominated the financial and political house of Florence for several generations. Donatello sculpted a four-foot six-inch bronze statue of David, which was the biblical hero for the Medici Family. David was one of Donatellos most famous sculptures. His sculpture of David was inspired by many works of Ancient Rome. It was also the first nude figure to be cast in bronze since the end of the Roman Empire. The statue captures a mood of triumph as David gazes down quietly at the severed head of Goliath. Portraying a mood or emotion in his sculptures, was definitely Donatellos style. In 1446 Donatello sculpted his largest statue, Gattamelate. Donatello was hired to sculpt a statue of Erasmo da Narni, a well-known mercenary who died in 1443. The statue Gattamelata stands today in Piazzo del Santo in Padua. The statue measured eleven feet two inches. The horse in Gattamelata is a life size horse built to carry a warrior in full armor. The statue is a horse frozen in mid stride moving forward with authority and power. Donatello has portrayed an emotion in his sculpture. Donatellos sculpting style continued to show natural and realistic figures. After completing the statue of Gattamelata, Donatello accepted commissions in several northern Italian cities, but he returned to Florence in 1554 at the age of sixty-seven. He continued to work full time and employed at least twenty apprentices to help meet the demands of his work. Donatellos later works became more philosophical than earlier in his life. He focused on biblical stories that illustrated moral values. In 1454 Donatello sc...
