Leonardo da vinci the last supper mystery painting. The Last Supper (fresco by Leonardo da Vinci)

22.04.2019

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« The last supper"Is undoubtedly one of the most mysterious works genius Leonardo da Vinci, with whom only his "La Gioconda" can compete in the number of rumors and conjectures.

After the publication of the novel The Da Vinci Code, the fresco decorating the refectory of the Milan Dominican monastery of Santa Maria delle Grazie (Chiesa e Convento Domenicano di Santa Maria delle Grazie) attracted the attention of not only art history researchers, but also lovers of all kinds of conspiracy theories ... In today's article, I will try to answer the most popular questions regarding The Last Supper by Leonardo da Vinci.

1. WHAT IS THE CORRECTLY CALLED "LAST SUPPER" OF LEONARDO?

Surprisingly, the "Last Supper" only in the Russian version has such a name, in the languages of other countries and the biblical event depicted on the fresco by Leonardo, and the fresco itself bears a much less poetic, but very succinct name "The Last Supper", that is, Ultima Cena in Italian or The Last Supper in English. In principle, the name more accurately reflects the essence of what is happening on the wall painting, because we have before us not a secret meeting of conspirators, but the last supper of Christ with the apostles. The second name of the fresco in Italian is Il Cenacolo, which translates simply as "refectory".

2. HOW DID THE IDEA OF WRITING THE “LAST SUPPER” COME UP?

Before answering this question, you need to make some clarity about the laws by which the art market lived in the fifteenth century. Actually free market art did not exist then, artists, as well as sculptors, worked only if they received an order from rich and influential families or from the Vatican. As you know, Leonardo da Vinci began his career in Florence, many believe that he had to leave the city because of accusations of homosexuality, but, in fact, everything was most likely much more prosaic. It's just that Leonardo in Florence had a very strong competitor- Michelangelo, who enjoyed the great location of Lorenzo Medici the Magnificent and took all the most interesting orders for himself. Leonardo arrived in Milan at the invitation of Ludovico Sforza and stayed in Lombardy for 17 years.

Pictured: Ludovico Sforza and Beatrice d'Este

All these years, da Vinci not only engaged in art, but also designed his famous military vehicles, strong and light bridges and even mills, and also was artistic director mass events... For example, it was Leonardo da Vinci who organized the wedding of Bianca Maria Sforza (Ludovico's niece) with Emperor Maximilian I of Innsbruck, and, of course, he also arranged the wedding of Ludovico Sforza himself with the young Beatrice d'Este, one of the most beautiful princesses of the Italian Renaissance. Beatrice d'Este was from wealthy Ferrara, and her younger brother... The princess was perfectly educated, her husband idolized her not only for her amazing beauty, but also for her sharp mind, and, in addition, contemporaries noted that Beatrice was a very energetic person, she took an active part in public affairs and patronized artists.

Photo: Santa Maria delle Grazie (Chiesa e Convento Domenicano di Santa Maria delle Grazie)

It is believed that the idea to decorate the refectory of the monastery of Santa Maria delle Grazie with a painting on the theme of the last supper of Christ with the apostles belongs to her. The choice of Beatrice fell on this Dominican monastery for one simple reason - the monastery church was, by the standards of the fifteenth century, a building surpassing the imaginations of the people of that time, so the refectory of the monastery deserved to be adorned by the hand of a master. Unfortunately, Beatrice d'Este herself never saw the Last Supper fresco, she died in childbirth at all young age, she was only 22 years old.

3. HOW MANY YEARS WAS LEONARDO DA VINCI WRITTEN "THE LAST SUPPER"?

There is no correct answer to this question, it is generally accepted that work on the painting began in 1495, proceeded intermittently, and finished by Leonardo in about 1498, that is, the next year after the death of Beatrice d'Este. However, since the archives of the monastery were destroyed, exact date the beginning of work on the fresco is unknown, one can only assume that it could not have begun before 1491, since this year the marriage of Beatrice and Ludovico Sforza took place, and if you focus on the few documents that have survived to this day, then, judging by them, the painting was at its final stage already in 1497.

4. IS THE LAST SUPPER OF LEONARDO DA VINCI FRESCA IN THE STRICT UNDERSTANDING OF THIS TERM?

No, in the strict sense, it is not. The fact is that given view painting implies that the artist must paint quickly, that is, work on wet plaster and immediately to the final copy. For Leonardo, who was very meticulous and did not recognize the work immediately, it was completely unacceptable, so da Vinci invented a special soil made of resin, gabs and mastic and wrote "The Last Supper" on dry basis. On the one hand, he was able to make numerous changes to the painting, and on the other, it was precisely because of painting on a dry surface that the canvas began to deteriorate very quickly.

5. WHAT MOMENT IS PICTURED AT LEONARDO'S LAST SUPPER?

The moment when Christ says that one of the disciples will betray him, the focus of the artist's attention is the disciples' reaction to his words.

6. WHO IS SITTING AT THE RIGHT HAND OF CHRIST: THE APOSTLE JOHN OR MARY MAGDALINA?

There is no unequivocal answer to this question, the rule is strictly working here, who believes in what - he sees it. Especially, state of the art"The Last Supper" is very far from what da Vinci's contemporaries saw the fresco. But, it is worth saying, Leonardo's contemporaries are a figure in right hand from Christ did not surprise and did not outrage. The fact is that on the frescoes on the theme of the "Last Supper" the figure on the right hand of Christ has always been very feminine; Maurizio.

In the photo: "The Last Supper" in the Basilica of San Maurizio

Here, the figure in the same position again looks very feminine, in a word, one of two things turns out: either all the artists in Milan were secret conspiracy and portrayed Mary Magdalene at the Last Supper, or is it just an artistic tradition - to portray John as a feminine youth. Decide for yourself.

7. WHAT IS THE INNOVATION OF THE LAST SUPPER, WHY IS THEY SAY THAT LEONARDO TOTALLY WASTE FROM THE CLASSIC CANONS?

First of all, in realism. The fact is that, creating his masterpiece, Leonardo decided to move away from the canons of painting on biblical themes that existed at that time, he wanted to achieve such an effect so that the monks who dined in the hall physically felt the presence of the Savior. That is why all household items were copied from those items that were used by the monks of the Dominican monastery: the same tables at which Leonardo's contemporaries ate, the same utensils, the same dishes, yes, even the landscape outside the window resembles a view from the windows a refectory as it was in the fifteenth century.

Photo: mirror image of the "Last Supper"

But that is not all! The fact is that the rays of light on the fresco are a continuation of the real sunlight falling through the windows of the refectory, in many places of the painting there is golden ratio, and due to the fact that Leonardo was able to correctly reproduce the depth of perspective, the fresco after the completion of the work was three-dimensional, that is, in fact, it was made with a 3D effect. Unfortunately, now, this effect can be seen only from one point of the hall, the coordinates of the desired point: 9 meters deep into the hall from the fresco and about 3 meters above the current floor level.

8. WITH WHOM LEONARDO WRITTEN CHRIST, JUDU AND OTHER CHARACTERS OF THE Fresco?

All the characters in the fresco were painted from Leonardo's contemporaries, they say that the artist constantly walked the streets of Milan and looked for suitable types, which even caused the displeasure of the abbot of the monastery, who considered that the artist was not spending enough time at work. As a result, Leonardo informed the abbot that if he did not stop bothering him, then the portrait of Judas would be painted from him. The threat had an effect, and the abbot of the maestro did not interfere anymore. For the image of Judas, the artist could not find a type for a very long time until he met a suitable person on the street of Milan.

Judas on the fresco "The Last Supper"

When Leonardo brought the extra to his studio, it turned out that the same man had posed for da Vinci for the image of Christ a few years earlier, just then he sang in the church choir and looked completely different. Such a wicked irony! In the light of this information, the well-known historical anecdote that the man from whom Leonardo wrote to Judas told everyone that he was depicted in the "Last Supper" in the image of Christ, acquires a completely different meaning.

9. IS THERE A PORTRAIT OF LEONARDO ON THE Fresco?

There is a theory that the "Last Supper" also has a self-portrait of Leonardo, allegedly the artist is present on the fresco in the image of the Apostle Thaddeus - this is the second figure from the right.

The image of the Apostle Thaddeus on the fresco and portraits of Leonardo da Vinci

The truth of this statement is still in question, but an analysis of Leonardo's portraits clearly demonstrates a strong outward resemblance with the image on the fresco.

10. HOW IS THE LAST SUPPER RELATED TO THE NUMBER 3?

Another mystery of the "Last Supper" is the constantly repeating number 3: there are three windows on the fresco, the apostles are arranged in groups of three, even the contours of the figure of Jesus resemble a triangle. And, I must say, this is not at all coincidental, because the number 3 constantly appears in the New Testament. It is not only about the Holy Trinity: God the Father, God the Son and the Holy Spirit, the number 3 also goes through the entire description of Jesus' earthly ministry.

Three wise men brought gifts to the born Jesus in Nazareth, 33 years - the term of the earthly life of Christ, also according to the New Testament three days and three nights should have been the Son of God in the heart of the earth (Matt. 12:40), that is, Jesus was in hell since the evening Friday through Sunday morning, in addition, the Apostle Peter denied Jesus Christ three times before the cock crowed (by the way, the prediction of this also sounded at the Last Supper), three crosses were raised on Calvary, and Christ was resurrected on the morning of the third day after the crucifixion.

PRACTICAL INFORMATION:

Tickets for visiting "The Last Vespers" must be booked in advance, but rumors that they need to be booked six months in advance are greatly exaggerated. In fact, a month, or even three weeks before the expected visit, free tickets for the required dates are usually available. You can order tickets on the website:, the cost depends on the season, in winter a visit to the "Last Supper" costs 8 euros, in the summer - 12 euros (prices according to information for 2016). In addition, nowadays, you can often see resellers near the church of Santa Maria delle Grazie selling tickets with a surcharge of 2-3 euros, so if you are lucky, you can get there by accident. Taking pictures of the mural is prohibited, entrance is strictly according to the time indicated on the ticket.

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Yulia Malkova- Julia Malkova - founder of the site project. In past Chief Editor internet project elle.ru and editor-in-chief of the website cosmo.ru. I'm talking about travel for my own pleasure and the pleasure of my readers. If you are a representative of hotels, tourism office, but we are not familiar, you can contact me by email: [email protected]

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✪ Leonardo da Vinci, "The Last Supper"

✪ The Last Supper - a fresco of the great Italian artist Renaissance by Leonardo da Vinci.

✪ The Last Supper (1495-1498) - Leonardo da Vinci

✪ Vladimir Sverzhin Secrets of Leonardo's Last Supper. Information group "Alisa".

✪ Leonardo da Vinci, Christ and the Magdalene.AVI

Subtitles

We are located in the Church of Santa Maria della Grazie, in Milan. Before us is the "Last Supper" by Leonardo da Vinci. We are in the room where the monks had their meal - in the refectory. Thus, several times a day they came here and ate in silence, having the opportunity to contemplate Leonardo's "Last Supper". This is definitely the perfect setting for this story. And far from unusual. Let's talk about the plot. During his last supper, Christ tells his twelve apostles, "One of you will betray me." And one of the frequent readings of this image is the reaction of the apostles to his words. That is, not actually the uttering of these words by Christ, but the moment after, the reaction of the apostles. These are his closest followers. And so for them his words are a terrible shock. We see the swirl of emotions of the apostles seated at the table. This is one way of interpreting the fresco, but there is another aspect of reading as well. Which, in a way, is even more significant. We see that Christ stretches out his hands to the cup of wine and bread. This is the embodiment of the sacrament. This is an interpretation of the Eucharist, the Sacrament of Holy Communion, when Christ says: “Receive my bread, this is My Body. Take the wine, this is My Blood. And remember Me. " We see how he stretches out his hands for bread and wine. But what is remarkable: the palm of Christ is wide open, so that it seems as if he, stretching out his hand to the wine, at the same time, stretches it out to the plate. At the same time, Judas reaches out to her. Judas is the one who is going to betray Christ. The Romans paid him 30 pieces of silver for betraying him. It can be seen how he clutches the bag of money in his right hand, recoiling from Christ. His face is hidden by a shadow. He moves away and at the same time reaches out to the plate. This is just one of the signs of Christ's definition of a traitor: a person who shares and eats food with him. This is interesting, since the history of the study of this work, in fact, boils down to exactly which moment is depicted here. But I think that all these moments are captured here. And the apostles are perceived to react both to the words of Christ “one of you will betray me”, and to the words “accept my bread, this is my body, accept the wine, this is my blood”. So, Leonardo depicts several moments of this story and, at the same time, conveys the feeling of the Divine, the eternal, the significance of this whole story. It is impossible to be mistaken about who these 13 people are at dinner. We know for sure, this is the same Last Supper. We are aware of the importance of this moment without any symbols of the divine that were present in Early Renaissance, for example, a halo. The images themselves are majestic in this space. They are located closely to each other, which conveys the energy and confusion surrounding excellence, significance and geometric shape Christ. Right. The image of Christ forms an equilateral triangle. His head is the center of the circle. The window against which she is depicted is perceived as a halo. The center of the picture is a source of calmness. And outside of it - human beings with all their shortcomings, fears, anxiety - around the divine center. This is Leonardo da Vinci - a mathematician, a scientist who thinks about the merger of everything that he depicts into a single whole. If we compare the early images of the Last Supper, there is a spacious table, rich decoration in the room. And Leonardo simplifies everything as much as possible and focuses on the characters, their gestures. He leaves no free space at the table, the whole place is occupied by the figures themselves, the table separates our space from Christ and the apostles. We cannot become part of this space in any way. Essentially, they have no way to get into our space. There is a clear border. In versions Last Supper that Leonardo could see in Florence, Judas is sitting on the opposite side of the table. By placing Judas in a row with the other apostles, the artist turns the table into a border between our world and the world of the apostles. Let's look at their faces: the face of Christ is peaceful, the gaze is lowered, one hand is raised, the other is below. On the right is a group of three people, among them Judas, he turns away from us into the shadows. His neck is rotated, which reminds us of his imminent self-hanging. He withdraws, and Saint Peter, the protector of Christ, strives to Christ. He has a knife that he holds behind his back. He seems to be asking: who is this? I need to protect you. The third figure in this trio with Judas and Peter, apparently, saint john who looks very humble, his eyes are closed. This is traditional for depicting the Last Supper. My favorite three are the outermost figures on the right. Da Vinci was especially interested in expressing the soul through the body, showing the inner nature. He creates these four triplets, this ties the images together, they seem to overlap each other, creating an intensity of passions. By creating tension and contrast between the emotional response of these images. Here's an incredible group where Thomas's gesture points up. As if saying: is this not predetermined by the Creator? Is it not the Lord's intention for one of us to betray you? However, of course, this pointing finger is an omen of the crucifixion of Christ, immersed in his wound. We also see Philip and Jacob Zebedee. They are in opposition: one spread his arms wide, the other brings them together. And if you compare with the early images of the Last Supper, you can see that there is a distance between the figures. And here is the idea of a unified composition, so characteristic of the High Renaissance. But what is most tangible, in my opinion, is the divine essence of Christ. His serenity. All perspective lines converge on it. It is noteworthy that the perspective line conveyed by the artist diverges slightly from the viewer's perspective line. That is, you need to be at the level of Christ in order to observe this fresco in the correct perspective. Interestingly, in a sense, the picture lifts the one who looks at it. We would have to get 10-15 feet above the ground for the perspective to be perfect. Thus, we are in the presence of the Divine at the center, which is transmitted in various ways. Do not forget that in 1498 people saw the painting in a different way. The painting is in a terrible state, in part because Leonardo experimented with combining oil paint and tempera in a setting where fresco was traditionally used. The image began to deteriorate shortly after its completion. Yes, unlike the traditional fresco, which was laid on wet plaster, Leonardo painted on dry. The paint was unable to firmly adhere to the wall. Fortunately for us, the picture has been preserved. So, in a way, it is perfect performance high Renaissance style. This is an attempt to create a sense of the eternal and perfect in the chaos of human life. Right. Fusion of the earthly and the divine. Subtitles by the Amara.org community

General information

The size of the image is approximately 460 × 880 cm, it is located in the refectory of the monastery, on the back wall. The theme is traditional for this kind of premises. The opposite wall of the refectory is covered with a fresco by another master; Leonardo also put his hand to it.

The painting was commissioned by Leonardo by his patron, Duke Lodovico Sforza and his wife Beatrice d'Este. The Sforza coat of arms is painted with lunettes above the painting, formed by a ceiling with three arches. Painting began in 1495 and completed in 1498; work went on intermittently. The date of commencement of work is not accurate, since "the archives of the monastery were destroyed, and the insignificant part of the documents that we have at our disposal date back to 1497, when the painting was almost completed."

Three early copies of the painting are known to exist, presumably by Leonardo's assistant.

Painting became a milestone in the history of the Renaissance: correctly reproduced the depth of perspective changed the direction of development of painting in the West.

Technique

Leonardo painted The Last Supper on a dry wall, not on wet plaster, so the painting is not a fresco in the true sense of the word. The fresco must not be altered during work, and Leonardo decided to cover stone wall a layer of resin, gabs and mastic, and then write on this layer with tempera.

Figures depicted

The apostles are depicted in groups of three, arranged around the figure of Christ seated in the center. Groups of apostles, from left to right:

Bartholomew, Jacob Alfeyev and Andrey;
Judas Iscariot (dressed in green and blue flowers), Peter and John;
Thomas, Jacob Zebedee and Philip;
Matthew, Judas Thaddeus and Simon.

In the 19th century, Leonardo da Vinci's notebooks with the names of the apostles were found; before that, only Judas, Peter, John and Christ had been identified with certainty.

Analysis of the painting

It is believed that the work depicts the moment when Jesus utters the words that one of the apostles will betray him (“ and as they ate, he said: Truly, I say to you, one of you will betray Me."), And the reaction of each of them.

As in other depictions of the Last Supper of that time, Leonardo places those seated at the table on one side of it so that the viewer can see their faces. Majority previous works on this topic, Judas was excluded, placing him alone at the part of the table opposite to that at which the other eleven apostles and Jesus sat, or depicting with a halo all the apostles except Judas. Judas clutches a small pouch in his hand, possibly representing the silver he received for betraying Jesus, or hinting at his role among the twelve apostles as treasurer. He alone put his elbow on the table. The knife in Peter's hand, pointing away from Christ, may refer the viewer to the scene in the Garden of Gethsemane during the arrest of Christ.

Jesus' gesture can be interpreted in two ways. According to the Bible, Jesus predicts that his traitor will reach out for food at the same time as him. Judas reaches for the dish, not noticing that Jesus is also reaching out to him with his right hand. At the same time, Jesus points to bread and wine, which symbolizes a sinless body and shed blood, respectively.

The figure of Jesus is positioned and illuminated in such a way that the viewer's attention is drawn, first of all, to him. The head of Jesus is at a vanishing point for all perspective lines.

The mural contains repeated references to the number three:

the apostles sit in groups of three;
behind Jesus there are three windows;
the contours of the figure of Christ resemble a triangle.

The light that illuminates the entire scene does not come from the windows painted in the back, but comes from the left, like real light from the window on the left wall.

In many places of the painting there is a golden ratio; for example, where Jesus and John, who is to his right, laid their hands, the canvas is divided in this ratio.

Damage and restorations

Already in 1517, the paint of the painting began to flake off due to moisture. In 1556, the biographer Leonardo Vasari described the painting as badly damaged and so deteriorated that the figures were almost impossible to recognize. In 1652, a doorway was made through the painting, later bricked up; it can still be seen in the middle of the base of the painting. Early copies suggest that Jesus' feet were in a position to symbolize the impending crucifixion. In 1668, a curtain was hung over the painting for protection; instead, it blocked off moisture from the surface, and when the curtain was pulled back, it scratched the peeling paint.

The first restoration was undertaken in 1726 by Michelangelo Belotti, who filled in the missing spots with oil paint and then varnished the fresco. This restoration did not last long, and another was undertaken in 1770 by Giuseppe Mazza. Mazza cleaned up the work of Belotti, and then thoroughly rewrote the painting: he rewrote all but three faces, and then was forced to stop work due to public outrage. In 1796, French troops used the refectory as an armory; they threw stones at the painting and climbed stairs to gouge out the eyes of the apostles. Then the refectory was used as a prison. In 1821, Stefano Barezzi, known for his ability to remove frescoes from walls with great care, was invited to move the painting to a safer place; he severely damaged the center section before realizing that Leonardo's work was not a fresco. Barezzi attempted to glue back the damaged areas with glue. From 1901 to 1908, Luigi Cavenaghi first carried out a thorough study of the structure of the painting, and then Cavenaghi began to clear it. In 1924, Oreste Silvestri carried out further clearing and stabilized some parts with plaster.

During World War II, on August 15, 1943, the refectory was bombed. The sandbags prevented the bomb fragments from entering the painting, but vibration could have been harmful.

In 1951-1954, Mauro Pellicoli carried out another restoration with clearing and stabilization.

Criticism

Most of the artists (Leonardo da Vinci, Tintoretto, etc.) depict the apostles sitting on chairs, which does not correspond to Eastern, Palestinian traditions, and only Alexander Ivanov depicted sitting truthfully - sitting in an oriental way.

Basic restoration

In the 1970s, the painting looked badly damaged. From 1978 to 1999, under the leadership of Pinin Brambilla Barchilon, a large-scale restoration project was carried out, the goal of which was to permanently stabilize the painting and get rid of the damage caused by pollution and improper restorations of the 18th and 19th centuries. Since moving the murals to a quieter environment seemed impractical, the refectory itself was turned into such a sealed and controlled climate environment, for which the windows had to be bricked up. Then to determine original form The mural was extensively investigated using infrared reflectivity and examinations of core samples as well as original cardboards from the Royal Library of Windsor Castle. Some areas were deemed unrecoverable. They were re-painted with watercolors in muted colors to show, without distracting the viewer's attention, that they were not original work.

The restoration took 21 years. On May 28, 1999 the painting was opened for viewing. Visitors must book their tickets in advance and can only spend 15 minutes in the refectory. When the fresco was inaugurated, a heated debate arose about the strong change in colors, tones and even ovals of faces in several figures. James Beck, professor of art history at Columbia University and founder of ArtWatch International, was particularly harsh about the work.

In popular culture

The painting is shown in the documentary series “Life After People” - after a quarter of a century, many elements of the painting will be erased over time, and after 60 years without people, 15 percent of the paint will remain from the fresco, and even then they will be overgrown with moss. "
In the video for the song "Tits" by the Leningrad group there is a scene where a parody of the picture is shown.
The music video for "HUMBLE" by Kendrick Lamar also features a parody of the painting.

The name itself famous work Leonardo da Vinci The Last Supper carries sacred meaning... Indeed, many of Leonardo's canvases are fanned with an aura of mystery. In The Last Supper, as in many other works of the artist, there is a lot of symbolism and hidden messages.

The restoration of the legendary creation was recently completed. Thanks to this, we managed to learn a lot interesting facts related to the history of the painting. Its meaning is still not entirely clear. More and more new guesses are being born about the hidden message of The Last Supper.

Leonardo da Vinci is one of the most mysterious personalities in history visual arts... Some practically rank the artist among the saints and write him laudatory odes, while others, on the contrary, consider him a blasphemer who sold his soul to the devil. But at the same time, no one doubts the genius of the great Italian.

The history of the painting

Hard to believe, but the monumental painting "The Last Supper" was made in 1495 by order of the Duke of Milan, Ludovico Sforza. Despite the fact that the ruler was famous for his dissolute disposition, he had a very modest and pious wife, Beatrice, whom he, it should be noted, respected and respected very much.

But, unfortunately, the true power of his love manifested itself only when his wife died suddenly. The duke's grief was so great that he did not leave his own chambers for 15 days, and when he left, the first thing he ordered Leonardo da Vinci for a fresco, which his late wife had once asked for, and forever put an end to his riotous lifestyle.

The artist completed his unique creation in 1498. The dimensions of the painting were 880 by 460 centimeters. Best of all, the "Last Supper" can be seen if you step back 9 meters to the side and rise 3.5 meters up. Creating the picture, Leonardo used egg tempera, which, later, played a cruel joke with the fresco. The canvas began to collapse just 20 years after its creation.

The famous fresco is located on one of the walls of the refectory in the Church of Santa Maria delle Grazie in Milan. According to art historians, the artist specially depicted in the picture exactly the same table and dishes that were used at that time in the church. With this simple trick, he tried to show that Jesus and Judas (Good and Evil) are much closer than we think.

Interesting Facts

1. The personalities of the apostles depicted on the canvas have repeatedly become the subject of controversy. Judging by the inscriptions on the reproduction of the canvas stored in Lugano, these are (from left to right) Bartholomew, Jacob the Younger, Andrew, Judas, Peter, John, Thomas, Jacob the Elder, Philip, Matthew, Thaddeus and Simon Zealot.

2. Many historians believe that the painting depicts the Eucharist (communion), since Jesus Christ points with both hands to the table with wine and bread. However, there is also an alternative version. It will be discussed below ...

3. Many are still with school course know the story that the hardest thing for da Vinci was the images of Jesus and Judas. Initially, the artist planned to make them the embodiment of good and evil and for a long time could not find people who would serve as models for creating his masterpiece.

Once an Italian, while serving in the church, saw a young man in the choir, so spiritualized and pure that there was no doubt: here it is - the incarnation of Jesus for his "Last Supper".

The last character whose prototype the artist could not find was Judas. Da Vinci wandered for hours through the narrow Italian streets in search of suitable model... And now, after 3 years, the artist found what he was looking for. In the ditch lay a drunkard who had long been at the edge of society. The artist ordered to bring the drunkard to his workshop. The man practically did not stay on his feet and was poorly aware of where he had ended up.

After the image of Judas was completed, the drunkard approached the picture and admitted that he had seen it somewhere before. To the bewilderment of the author, the man replied that three years ago he was a completely different person - he sang in the church choir and led a righteous life. It was then that some artist approached him with a proposal to write Christ from him.

So, according to the assumptions of historians, for the images of Jesus and Judas, the same person posed in different periods own life. This fact serves as a metaphor, showing that good and evil go hand in hand and there is a very fine line between them.

4. The most controversial is the opinion that at the right hand of Jesus Christ sits not a man at all, but none other than Mary Magdalene. Her location indicates that she was the lawful wife of Jesus. The letter M is formed from the silhouettes of Mary Magdalene and Jesus. It supposedly means the word matrimonio, which is translated as "marriage."

5. According to some scholars, the unusual arrangement of students on the canvas is not accidental. Say, Leonardo da Vinci placed people according to the signs of the zodiac. According to this legend, Jesus was Capricorn, and his beloved Mary Magdalene was the Virgin.

6. It is impossible not to mention the fact that during the Second World War, as a result of a shell hit in the building of the church, almost everything was destroyed, except for the wall on which the fresco is depicted.

And before that, in 1566, local monks made a door in the wall depicting the Last Supper, which “cut off” the legs of the characters in the fresco. A little later, the Milanese coat of arms was hung over the head of the Savior. And at the end of the 17th century, a stable was made from the refectory.

7. No less interesting are the thoughts of people of art about the food depicted on the table. For example, near Judas, Leonardo drew an overturned salt shaker (which at all times was considered bad luck) as well as an empty plate.

8. There is an assumption that the apostle Thaddeus sitting with his back to Christ is actually a self-portrait of da Vinci himself. And, given the artist's temper and his atheistic views, this hypothesis is more than likely.

I think even if you do not consider yourself a connoisseur high art, you are still interested in this information. If so, share the article with your friends.

Last Supper - event last days the earthly life of Jesus Christ, his last meal with his twelve closest disciples, during which he established the sacrament of the Eucharist and predicted the betrayal of one of the disciples. The Last Supper is the subject of many icons and paintings, but the most famous work- This is "The Last Supper" by Leonardo da Vinci.

In the center of Milan, next to the Gothic Church of Santa Maria della Grazie, is the entrance to the former Dominican monastery, where the famous mural by Leonardo da Vinci is located. The Last Supper, created in the years 1495-97, is the most copied work. Already during the Renaissance, about 20 works with the same theme were written by artists from France, Germany and Spain.

Church of Santa Maria della Grazie

The painter received an order to write the work from his patron, the Duke of Milan, Ludovico Sforza in 1495. Despite the fact that the ruler was famous for his dissolute life, after the death of his wife, he did not leave his room for 15 days. And when he left, the first thing Leonardo da Vinci ordered was a fresco, which his late wife had once asked for, and forever stopped all entertainment at court.

Sketch

"The Last Supper", description

Leonardo's brush captured Jesus Christ with his apostles during the last dinner, before his execution, held in Jerusalem, on the eve of his arrest by the Romans. According to the scriptures, Jesus said during the meal that one of the apostles would betray him (“and when they ate, he said, truly I say to you that one of you will betray Me”). Leonardo da Vinci tried to portray the reaction of each of the students to the teacher's prophetic phrase. The artist, as usual creative people, worked very chaotically. He did not tear himself away for whole days from his work, then he applied only a few strokes. He walked around town, spoke to common people, watched the emotions on their faces.

The size of the work is approximately 460 × 880 cm, it is located in the refectory of the monastery, on the back wall. Although it is often referred to as a mural, this is not entirely correct. After all, Leonardo da Vinci wrote the work not on wet plaster, but on dry plaster, in order to be able to edit it several times. To do this, the artist applied a thick layer of egg tempera to the wall.

Painting method oil paints turned out to be very short-lived. Ten years later, together with his students, he tried to carry out the first restoration work. In total, eight restorations were made over the course of 300 years. As a result, new layers of paint were repeatedly applied to the painting, significantly distorting the original.

Today, in order to protect this delicate work from damage, a constant temperature and humidity of the air is maintained in the building through special filtering devices. Entrance at a time - no more than 25 people every 15 minutes, and entrance ticket must be ordered in advance.

Da Vinci's cult work is full of legends; a number of mysteries and conjectures are associated with it. We will present some of them.

Leonardo Da Vinci "The Last Supper"

1. It is believed that the hardest thing for Leonardo da Vinci was to write two characters: Jesus and Judas. The artist has long been looking for suitable models to embody the images of good and evil.

Jesus

Once Leonardo saw in the church choir a young singer - so spiritualized and pure that there was no doubt: he found the prototype of Jesus for his "Last Supper". It remained to find Judas.

Judas

The artist spent hours wandering around the hot spots, but he was lucky only after almost 3 years. In a ditch, there was an absolutely downcast person in a state of strong alcoholic intoxication. They brought him to the workshop. And after the image of Judas was painted, the drunkard approached the picture and admitted that he had already seen it before. It turned out that three years ago he was completely different, led a correct lifestyle and sang in the church choir. And somehow some artist approached him with a proposal to write Christ from him.

2. The painting contains repeated references to the number three:

The apostles sit in groups of three;

There are three windows behind Jesus;

The contours of the figure of Christ resemble a triangle.

3. The figure of the disciple, located on the right hand of Christ, remains controversial. It is believed that this is Mary Magdalene and her location indicates the fact that she was the lawful wife of Jesus. This fact is allegedly confirmed by the letter "M" (from "Matrimonio" - "marriage"), which is formed by the contours of the couple's bodies. At the same time, some historians argue with this statement and insist that the painting shows the signature of Leonardo da Vinci - the letter "V".

4. During World War II, on August 15, 1943, the refectory was bombed. The shell that hit the church building destroyed almost everything, except for the wall on which the fresco was depicted. The sandbags prevented the bomb fragments from entering the painting, but vibration could have been harmful.

5. Historians and art historians study in detail not only the apostles, but also the food depicted on the table. For example, the biggest subject of controversy is still the fish in the painting. It is not defined what is painted on the fresco - herring or eel. Scientists see this as encrypted hidden meaning... And all because in Italian "eel" is pronounced like "aringa". And "arringa" means instruction. At the same time, the word "herring" is pronounced in northern Italy as "renga", which means "one who denies religion".

Undoubtedly, Leonardo da Vinci's "Last Supper" is still fraught with many unsolved secrets. And, as soon as they are solved, we will certainly write about it.

The very name of the famous work of Leonardo da Vinci "The Last Supper" carries a sacred meaning. Indeed, many of Leonardo's canvases are fanned with an aura of mystery. In The Last Supper, as in many other works of the artist, there is a lot of symbolism and hidden messages.

The restoration of the legendary creation was recently completed. Thanks to this, it was possible to learn a lot of interesting facts related to the history of the painting. Its meaning is still not entirely clear. More and more new guesses are being born about the hidden message of The Last Supper.

Leonardo da Vinci is one of the most enigmatic personalities in the history of the visual arts. Some practically rank the artist among the saints and write him laudatory odes, while others, on the contrary, consider him a blasphemer who sold his soul to the devil. But at the same time, no one doubts the genius of the great Italian.

The history of the painting

Interesting Facts

3. Many people from the school course know the story that the images of Jesus and Judas were the most difficult for da Vinci. Initially, the artist planned to make them the embodiment of good and evil and for a long time could not find people who would serve as models for creating his masterpiece.

Once an Italian, while serving in the church, saw a young man in the choir, so spiritualized and pure that there was no doubt: here it is - the incarnation of Jesus for his "Last Supper".

The last character whose prototype the artist could not find was Judas. Da Vinci spent hours wandering the narrow Italian streets in search of a suitable model. And now, after 3 years, the artist found what he was looking for. In the ditch lay a drunkard who had long been at the edge of society. The artist ordered to bring the drunkard to his workshop. The man practically did not stay on his feet and was poorly aware of where he had ended up.

So, according to the assumptions of historians, the same person posed for the images of Jesus and Judas at different periods of his life. This fact serves as a metaphor, showing that good and evil go hand in hand and there is a very fine line between them.

I think that even if you do not consider yourself to be a connoisseur of high art, you are still interested in this information. If so, share the article with your friends.

Leonardo da vinci the last supper mystery painting. The Last Supper (fresco by Leonardo da Vinci)

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"The Last Supper", description

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