The incredulous Italian response highlighted how the US culture wars are often perceived in Europe, where despite a rise in right-wing sentiment and governance, the Renaissance and its masterpieces, even its naked ones, are generally free of controversy. Sunday’s front page of the Italian daily publication Corriere della Sera featured a cartoon by its leading satirist depicting David with his genitals covered by an image of Uncle Sam and the word “Shame”.

Carrasquilla believes the board targeted her after three parents complained about a lesson including a photo of the David, a 5-metre tall (17ft) nude marble sculpture dating from 1504. The work, reflecting the height of the Italian Renaissance, depicts the Biblical David going to fight Goliath armed only with his faith in God.

Carrasquilla has said two parents complained because they were not notified in advance that a nude would be shown, while a third called the iconic statue pornographic.

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Carrasquilla said in a phone interview on Sunday that she is “very honoured” by the invitations to Italy and she may accept.

“I am totally, like, wow,” Carrasquilla said. “I’ve been to Florence before and have seen the David up close and in person, but I would love to go and be a guest of the mayor.”

Cecilie Hollberg, director of the Galleria dell’Accademia, where the David is housed, expressed astonishment at the controversy.

“To think that David could be pornographic means truly not understanding the contents of the Bible, not understanding western culture and not understanding Renaissance art,” Hollberg said in a telephone interview.

She invited the principal, school board, parents and pupils to view the “purity” of the statue.

Tallahassee Classical is a charter school. While it is funded by taxpayers and tuition-free, it operates almost entirely independently of the local school district and is sought out by parents seeking an alternative to the public school curriculum.

About 400 pupils from kindergarten to grade 12 attend the three-year-old institution, which is now on its third principal. It follows a curriculum designed by Hillsdale College, a conservative Christian school in Michigan frequently consulted by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis on educational issues.

Barney Bishop, chairman of Tallahassee Classical’s school board, has told reporters that while the photo of the statue played a part in Carrasquilla’s removal, it was not the only factor. He has declined to elaborate, while defending the decision.

“Parents are entitled to know any time their child is being taught a controversial topic and picture,” Bishop said in an interview with Slate online magazine.

Several parents and teachers plan to protest against Carrasquilla’s exit at Monday night’s school board meeting, but Carrasquilla said she is not sure she would take the job back even if it were offered.

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“There’s been such controversy and such upheaval,” she said. “I would really have to consider, ‘Is this truly what is best?’”

Marla Stone, head of humanities studies at the American Academy in Rome, said the Florida incident was another episode in escalating US culture wars and questioned how the statue could be considered so controversial as to warrant a prior warning.

“What we have here is a moral crusade against the body, sexuality, and gender expression and an ignorance of history,” Stone said in an email. “The incident is about fear, fear of beauty, of difference, and of the possibilities embedded in art.”

Michelangelo Buonarroti sculpted the David between 1501-1504 after being commissioned by the Cathedral of Florence. The statue is the showpiece of the Accademia, and helps draw 1.7 million visitors each year to the museum.

“It is incredibly sought-after by Americans who want to do selfies and enjoy the beauty of this statue,” Director Hollberg said.

The museum, like many in Europe, is free for school pupils and student groups. There was no indication that any trip would be subsidised by the city or museum.