The author explores the underbelly of Freud's essay “The Moses of Michelangelo.” Mahony begins by providing a brief history and description of the statue of Moses. He then introduces the cast of this drama: Michelangelo, Pope Julius II, Moses, and Freud. Mahony notes the “superlative qualities of the story,” including the importance of the statue for Freud, Michelangelo, Christianity, and the art world (p. 14).

In contrast, despite this importance, Freud's essay “stands as his least psychoanalytic piece of writing” (p. 15). Mahony details Freud's interpretation of the statue and the problems it reveals. He goes on to describe why he thinks Freud had such difficulty. Finally, the author turns his focus to Freud's essay as an art object in its own right.