Hope Carrasquilla accepts invitation from Florence mayor.

The Florida school principal who was forced to resign after parents complained that children were shown "pornographic" images of Michelangelo’s iconic David statue will travel to Florence this week to meet the city's mayor David Nardella.

Hope Carrasquilla, the former principal of Tallahassee Classical School, will meet Mayor Nardella at Palazzo Vecchio on the morning of Saturday 29 April.

Also present at the meeting will be Friends of Florence president Simonetta Brandolini D'Adda, who helped to organise the initiative, and Accademia delle arti del disegno president Cristina Acidini.

"Confusing art with pornography is ridiculous and also offensive" - Nardella said on Monday, reports Corriere della Sera newspaper - "The nude is part of art. Kids don't need censorship or crusades but a serious education that explains what the history of art is and how important it is for the development of civilisation".

Last month, after the David controversy made world headlines, Nardella personally invited Carrasquilla to Florence and promised to giver her a recognition on behalf of the city.

The incident occurred following a Renaissance art lesson which included images of the David statue as well as Michelangelo's Birth of Adam and Botticelli's Birth of Venus.

Several parents complained, with one claiming that the sixth grade students were exposed to pornographic material, and other parents saying they should have been informed in advance about the nature of the lesson, as per school procedure.

Carrasaquilla was given the ultimatum by the school board to either resign or be fired.

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