The Enigma of Da Vinci's The Virgin of the Rocks

Exploring the Mystery of Leonardo Da Vinci’s Famous Painting

Jul 6, 2009

This strange and magical altarpiece is made all the more mysterious because, although pictures by Leonardo Da Vinci (1452-1519) are rare, two versions exist.

The history of Da Vinci's 'Virgin of the Rocks' painting is complicated. One version hangs in the National Gallery in London and an earlier replica in the Louvre in Paris, both identical in design and size.

The Painting

Painted on a panel 75 x 47 inches, the composition of Da Vinci’s ‘The Virgin of the Rocks’ is a simple one. In front of a grotto the Virgin kneels protecting St John the Baptist with one hand and indicating the pre-eminence of the Christ Child with the other. An angel supports the Christ Child, who blesses the Baptist. St John, in representing the human race, is blessed by The Saviour and protected by the Virgin, who represents Mother Church.

The evolution of Da Vinci’s design for the picture is suggested by a sheet of drawings, now in the Metropolitan Museum of New York. At first the Virgin was shown kneeling with both hands folded gazing upon the Christ Child. This was a traditional concept for a painting of the Nativity. Then one of the Virgin’s arms was extended and both arms extended over the Child. Finally a second child was introduced to give coherence to the pose of the Virgin with both arms outstretched.

The carefully modulated lighting, the gentle shadows, the sweetness and grace of the figures are recognizable as traits which made a deep impression on the younger generation of high Renaissance artists.

The Puzzle

Scholars remain divided on the questions of whether both paintings are by Leonardo Da Vinci and how they originated. The altarpiece was originally commissioned from Leonardo Da Vinci for the church of S. Francesco Grande in Milan in 1483, but in 1508 it was still unfinished. The London painting (which is unfinished) was removed from S. Francesco Grande in the eighteenth century.

The relationship between the National Gallery and Louvre versions is a source of ongoing dispute in the art world, but it seems likely that the National Gallery version was finished c1507-08 and therefore represents the last phase of Leonardo Da Vinci’s painting style.

The style of the painting supports this view. The end of Leonardo Da Vinci’s career, specifically his return to Florence, saw a shift in style towards more delicate and sober colouring. His later paintings possess a sensitive tonal unity, and by contrast with the brilliant definition of his earlier painting ‘The Annunciation’ in the Uffizi, the transitions from light to shadow are gently blurred in a technique later called ‘sfumato’. The sfumato effect, evident in ‘The Virgin of the Rocks’, indicates that the individual degrees of these transitions had disappeared.

The history of the Louvre version can only be traced back to 1625 when it was seen at Fontainebleau, but it is generally agreed to be not only the earlier but also the finer of the two versions.

Sources

The copyright of the article The Enigma of Da Vinci's The Virgin of the Rocks in Renaissance Art is owned by Peter John Shearing. Permission to republish The Enigma of Da Vinci's The Virgin of the Rocks in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.