Scientists recently used advanced imaging technology to unveil hidden drawings of an angel and baby Christ beneath a famous Leonardo da Vinci painting.
The masterpiece, which is named “The Virgin of the Rocks,” is located at The National Gallery in London, Fox News noted. Scientists were able to identify these figures with the help of macro X-ray fluorescence scanning (macro XRF), which detected zinc in the angel and baby Christ drawings, The National Gallery said in a press release. Infrared reflectography (IRR) and hyperspectral imaging (HSI) were also used to provide clearer images of the sketches for these figures.
A macro XRF map shows the distribution of zinc across an area of the painting, which reveals the drawing for the angel and baby Christ of the first composition. (Photo Credit: The National Gallery)
“New imaging has revealed Leonardo’s earlier design for the angel and baby Christ, which show significant differences to how they look in the finished painting,” The National Gallery said in the press statement. “In the composition that was drawn first, both figures appear higher up, while the angel, facing out, is looking down on the baby Christ with what appears to be a much tighter embrace.”
Hyperspectral imaging (HSI) provided clearer images of the drawings for the figures above. (Photo Credit: The National Gallery)
These aren’t the first “abandoned” figures discovered in the painting: Back in 2005, a team of conservators, curators, and scientists analyzed “The Virgin of the Rocks” and spotted a completely different design. Using IRR, they found a preliminary sketch of the Virgin Mary Leonardo da Vinci started on one picture and then ditched it for the existing version.
A drawing of the eye of the Virgin from the initial composition as shown in the IRR. (Photo Credit: The National Gallery)
According to The National Gallery, it’s unclear why Leonardo da Vinci significantly altered his original composition. “The Virgin of the Rocks” was created for the Confraternity of the Immaculate Conception in Milan and it is the second version of the masterpiece. An earlier version of “The Virgin of the Rocks” is on display at the Louvre in Paris and it’s possible that Leonardo da Vinci sold the “Paris” version of the painting to a private client after the Confraternity didn’t offer him a bonus.
After studying these scientific images, it’s believed that Leonardo da Vinci started working on a new piece, but then changed his mind to reproduce the original vision he had in mind for the painting. With these scientific images, experts can further study Leonardo da Vinci’s creative perspective.
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