It is the central sculpture of the tomb of Giuliano de' Medici, Duke of Nemours, and is an idealised portrait of him.

The work, inserted in a niche, shows the young duke seated, dressed like an ancient Roman general and in an attitude of pride, as noted by Giorgio Vasari, as opposed to the "melancholic" Lorenzo.

This attitude has been read as a metaphor for the "active life" of the Neoplatonic doctrine, as the personification of vigilance, or of the calm of the dead souls, or of the choleric-sanguine temperament of the humoral theory.

The reliefs of the armor have been attributed to Montorsoli, as well as, according to Charles de Tolnay, the detail of the foot protruding from the base.

The duke holds the baton of command in his hand, and two coins: these have been interpreted as a reminder of the offering that the dead had to pay in the kingdom of the Underworld according to ancient mythology.