Apollo and Daphne
The artist
Gian Lorenzo Bernini (Italian), 1625.
What you see
The god Apollo runs and reaches out to the nymph Daphne, and at that very instant she begins turning into a laurel tree, her fingers sprouting leaves.
The story
This comes from an ancient Greek myth in which Daphne asks to be saved and is magically changed into a tree. Bernini froze the most exciting second of the whole story in stone.
The style
It is carved from one block of marble, cut so thin in places that the leaves and hair seem to tremble in the air.
Look closer
Look at Daphne's toes turning into roots and her hair becoming branches, all carved from cold marble yet full of motion.
Where to see it
You can see it at the Galleria Borghese in Rome, Italy.
Fun fact
Bernini was only about twenty-five years old when he finished this masterpiece, and people could hardly believe such delicate leaves were really made of stone.