This bronze statue of the emperor Marcus Aurelius on horseback is the only large equestrian statue to survive from ancient Rome. The emperor raises his right hand in a gesture of address or clemency. Many similar bronzes were melted down in the Middle Ages, but this one survived because it was believed to show Constantine, the first Christian emperor.
In 1538 it was moved to the Capitoline Hill, where Michelangelo designed the Piazza del Campidoglio around it. The original, restored in the 1980s, is now displayed indoors in the Capitoline Museums, with a copy in the piazza.
