Slog - The Stranger's Blog

Line Out

The Music Blog

« Keep yer yap shut | Listening PARTAY! »

Tuesday, November 29, 2005

Warning: `David’ Can Cause Mental Imbalance

Posted by on November 29 at 15:43 PM

As a David who’s caused a fair amount of psychic disturbance, I thought I’d share this urgent bit of news with you. Clearly, I am no competition for a centuries-old naked statue.

Michelangelo’s David, regarded as the world’s most beautiful statue, can trigger mental imbalances in overly sensitive and cultivated onlookers, according to a top psychiatrist in Florence.

Graziella Magherini, president of Italy’s Art and Psychology Association, reported the preliminary findings of her year-long study at a symposium at the Galleria dell’Accademia in Florence where the naked marble man attracts 1.2 million visitors a year. She said David can have a particular emotional impact on a certain kind of visitor.

“I’ve called it the David Syndrome. It causes mind-bending symptoms and affects mostly those traveling on their own or in couples,” Magherini told Discovery News.