A clean-up of Michelangelo’s stague of David took place on Monday, financed by  Friends of Florence Foundation, a US non-profit group. According to Simonetta Brandolini d’Adda, head of the Friends of Florence, the group has spent about 500,000 euros in the past years to help preserve Renaissance works of this kind.

The process of cleaning the statue takes place every 2-3 months. A team of experts used brushes and vacuum cleaners to dust the marble statue, at the Galleria dell’ Accademia in Florence.

A replica stands in the central Florence square while the original is kept at the museum for protection from pollution and damage from weather and natural causes.