,,drawings ,,of ,,leonardo ,,da ,,vinci 
,with an introduction by ,charles ,lewis
 ,hind  ,,london4 ,,george ,,newnes     
,,limited  ,,southampton ,,street4      
,,strand ,,wc  ,,new ,,york4 ,,charles  
,,scribner',s ,,sons  #aijg     ,,list  
,,of ,,illustrations                    
,,plate   ,,profile ,,of ,a ,,warrior   
,,frontispiece   ,,portrait ,,of        
,,isabella ,d',,este                    
,i   ,,study ,,of ,,an ,,old ,,man      
,,ii   ,,study ,,of ,,draperies ,,for   
,,kneeling ,,figures                    
,,iii   ,,study ,,of ,a ,,bacchus       
,,iv   ,,head ,,of ,a ,,man             
,v   ,,battle ,,between ,,horsemen ,,and
 ,,monsters                       ,,vi  
,,woman ,,seated ,,on ,,ground ,,and    
,,child ,,kneeling                      
,,vii   ,,studies ,,of ,,heads          
,,viii   ,,youth ,,on ,,horseback       
,,ix   ,,studies ,,for ,,the            
,,equestrian ,,statue ,,of ,,francesco  
,,sforza      ,x   ,,the ,,virgin1 ,,st4
 ,,anne ,,and ,,infant                  

,,xi   ,,studies ,,of ,,children        
,,xii   ,,the ,,combat                  
,,xiii   ,,study ,,for ,a ,,madonna     
,,xiv   ,,studies ,,for ,,the ,,holy    
,,family                                
,,xv   ,,studies ,,for ,,the ,,last     
,,supper                                
,,xvi   ,,courtyard ,,of ,a             
,,cannon-,,foundry                      
,,xvii   ,,study ,,of ,,the ,,head ,,of 
,,an ,,apostle                          
,,xviii   ,,study ,,for ,,background    
,,of ,,the ,,adoration ,,of ,,the ,,magi
        ,,xix   ,,study ,,of ,,landscape
                                        
,,xx   ,,study ,,of ,a ,,tree           
,,xxi   ,,two ,,heads ,,caricatures     
,,xxii   ,,st4 ,,john ,,the ,,baptist   
,,xxiii   ,,the ,,head ,,of ,,christ    
,,xxiv   ,,caricatures                  
,,xxv   ,,head ,,of ,,an ,,angel        
,,xxvi   ,,study ,,of ,a ,,man',s ,,head
                                        
,,xxvii   ,,studies ,,of ,,hands        
,,xxviii   ,,dragon ,,fighting ,,with ,a

 ,,lion                                 
,,xxix   ,,man ,,kneeling               
,,xxx   ,,portrait ,,study              
,,xxxi   ,,studies ,,of ,,animals       
,,xxxii   ,,portrait ,,of ,,leonardo1   
,,by ,,himself                          
,,xxxiii   ,,six ,,heads ,,of ,,men     
,,and ,a ,,bust ,,of ,a ,,woman         
,,xxxiv   ,,study ,,of ,a ,,head        
,,xxxv   ,,the ,,st4 ,,anne ,,cartoon   
,,xxxvi   ,,studies ,,of ,,horses       
,,xxxvii   ,,heads ,,of ,a ,,woman ,,and
 ,a ,,child                             
,,xxxviii   ,,study ,,of ,,drapery ,,for
 ,a ,,kneeling ,,figure                 
,,xxxix   ,,knight ,,in ,,armour        
,,xl   ,,study ,,of ,a ,,youthful ,,head
                                   ,,xli
   ,,study ,,for ,,leda                 
,,xlii   ,,head ,,of ,,an ,,old ,,man   
,,xliii   ,,study ,,of ,a ,,head        
,,xliv   ,,study ,,of ,,the ,,head ,,of 
,,st4 ,,philip ,,for ,,the ,,last       
,,supper      ,,xlv   ,,study ,,of      
,,drapery                               

,,xlvi   ,,girl',s ,,head               
,,xlvii   ,,studies ,,of ,a ,,satyr     
,,with ,a ,,lion                        
,,xlviii     ,,the ,,drawings ,,of      
,,leonardo ,,da ,,vinci ,,by ,c4 ,,lewis
 ,,hind   ,leonardo da ,vinci found in  
drawing the readiest and most           
stimulating way of self-expression4 ,the
 use of pen and crayon came to him as   
naturally as the monologue to an eager  
and egoistic talker4 ,the outline       
designs in his ,treatise on ,painting   
aid and amplify the text with a force   
that is almost unknown in modern        
illustrated books4 ,open the pages at   
random4 ,here is a sketch showing the   
greatest twist which a man can make in  
turning to look at himself behind4 ,the 
accompanying text is hardly needed4 ,the
 drawing supplies all that ,leonardo    
wished to convey4  ,unlike ,velasquez1  
whose authentic drawings are almost     
negligible1 pen1 pencil1 silver-point1  
or chalk were rarely absent from        
,leonardo's hand1 and although1 in face 

of the ,monna ,lisa and ,the ,virgin of 
the ,rocks and the ,st4 ,anne1 it is an 
exaggeration to say that he would have  
been quite as highly esteemed had none  
of his work except the drawings been    
preserved1 it is in the drawings that we
 realise the extent of that continent   
called ,leonardo4 ,the inward-smiling   
women of the pictures1 that have given  
,leonardo as painter a place apart in   
the painting hierarchy1 appear again and
 again in the drawings4 ,and in the     
domain of sculpture1 where ,leonardo    
also triumphed1 although nothing        
modelled by his hand now remains1 we    
read in ,vasari of certain heads of     
women smiling4  ,his spirit was never at
 rest1 says ,antonio ,billi1 his        
earliest biographer1 his mind was ever  
devising new things4 ,the restlessness  
of that profound and soaring mind is    
nowhere so evident as in the drawings   
and in the sketches that illustrate the 
manuscripts4 ,nature1 in lavishing so   
many gifts upon him1 perhaps withheld   

concentration1 although it might be     
argued that1 like the bee1 he did not   
leave a flower until all the honey or   
nourishment he needed was withdrawn4 ,he
 begins a drawing on a sheet of paper1  
his imagination darts and leaps1 and the
 paper is soon covered with various     
designs4 ,upon the margins of his       
manuscripts he jotted down pictorial    
ideas4 ,between the clauses of the      
,codex ,atlanticus we find an early     
sketch for his lost picture of ,leda4   
,the world at large to-day reverences   
him as a painter1 but to ,leonardo      
painting was but a section of the full  
circle of life4 ,everything that offered
 food to the vision or to the brain of  
man appealed to him4 ,in the letter that
 he wrote to the ,duke of ,milan in     
#adhb1 offering his services1 he sets   
forth1 in detail1 his qualifications in 
engineering and military science1 in    
constructing buildings1 in conducting   
water from one place to another1        
beginning with the clause1 ,i can       

construct bridges which are very light  
and strong and very portable4 ,not until
 the end of this long letter does he    
mention the fine arts1 contenting       
himself with the brief statement1 ,i can
 further execute sculpture in marble1   
bronze1 or clay1 also in painting ,i can
 do as much as any one else1 whoever he 
be4 ,astronomy1 optics1 physiology1     
geology1 botany1 he brought his mind to 
bear upon all4 ,indeed1 he who          
undertakes to write upon ,leonardo is   
dazed by the range of his activities4   
,he was military engineer to ,caesar    
,borgia2 he occupied himself with the   
construction of hydraulic works in      
,lombardy2 he proposed to raise the     
,baptistery of ,san ,giovanni at        
,florence2 he schemed to connect the    
,loire by an immense canal with the     
,saone2 he experimented with            
flying-machines2 and his early          
biographers testify to his skill as a   
musician4 ,painting and modelling he    
regarded but as a moiety of his genius4 

,he spared no labour over a creation    
that absorbed him4 ,matteo ,bandello1 a 
member of the convent of ,santa ,maria  
della ,grazie1 gives the following      
account of his method when engaged upon 
,the ,last ,supper4 ,he was wont1 as ,i 
myself have often seen1 to mount the    
scaffolding early in the morning and    
work until the approach of night1 and in
 the interest of painting he forgot both
 meat and drink4 ,there came two1 three1
 or even four days when he did not stir 
a hand1 but spent an hour or two in     
contemplating his work1 examining and   
criticising the figures4 ,i have seen   
him1 too1 at noon1 when the sun stood in
 the sign of ,leo1 leave the ,corte     
,vecchia 7in the centre of the town71   
where he was engaged on his equestrian  
statue1 and go straight to ,santa ,maria
 della ,grazie1 mount the scaffolding1  
seize a brush1 add two or three touches 
to a single figure1 and return          
forthwith4  ,leonardo impressed his     
contemporaries and touched their        

imaginations1 even as he captivates us  
to-day4 ,benvenuto ,cellini describes   
,king ,francis as hanging upon          
,leonardo's words during the last years 
of his life1 and saying that he did not 
believe that any other man had come into
 the world who had attained so great a  
knowledge as ,leonardo4 ,everybody knows
 ,pater's luminously imaginative essay  
on ,leonardo1 and scientific criticism  
has said perhaps the last word upon his 
achievement in ,mr4 ,mc,curdy's recent  
volume1 and in ,mr4 ,herbert ,p4        
,horne's edition of ,vasari's ,life4 ,as
 to the drawings1 ,mr4 ,bernhard        
,berenson1 in his costly work on ,the   
,drawings of the ,florentine ,masters1  
has included a catalogue raisonn1 has   
scattered lovely reproductions through  
the pages1 and placed his favourites on 
the pinnacle of his appreciation4 ,in   
the manuscripts1 with their wealth of   
sketches in the text1 one realises the  
tremendous sweep of ,leonardo's mental  
activity4 ,some are still unpublished1  

but the ,italian ,government promise a  
complete edition of the ,,mss4 at an    
early date4 ,his ,treatise on ,painting 
is easily accessible in ,dr4 ,richter's 
,literary ,works of ,leonardo da        
,vinci--that wonderful treatise which   
begins3 ,the young student should1 in   
the first place1 acquire a knowledge of 
perspective1 to enable him to give every
 object its proper dimensions3 after    
which1 it is requisite that he be under 
the care of an able master1 to accustom 
him1 by degrees1 to a good style of     
drawing the parts4 ,next1 he should     
study ,nature1 in order to confirm and  
fix in his mind the reason of those     
precepts which he has learnt4 ,he must  
also bestow some time in viewing the    
works of various old masters1 to form   
his eye and judgment1 in order that he  
may be able to put in practice all that 
he has been taught4 ,chapter ,,ccxxx4 in
 the section on ,colours is entitled    
,how to paint a ,picture that will ,last
 ,almost for ,ever4 ,in view of the     

present condition of ,the ,last ,supper 
at ,milan1 fading from sight1 ,leonardo 
was wise to insert the word almost4 ,he 
is constantly giving the reader         
surprises1 and not the least of them is 
the series of ,fables from his pen1     
included in ,dr4 ,richter's edition of  
his literary works4  ,one authentic     
portrait of ,leonardo by his own hand   
exists--the red chalk drawing in the    
library at ,turin4 ,dating from the last
 years of his life1 it shows the face of
 a seer1 moulded by incessant thought   
into firm1 strongly marked lines4 ,the  
eyes lurk deep beneath shaggy brows1 the
 hair and beard are long and            
straggling--it is the face of a man who 
has peered into hidden things and who   
has pondered deeply over what he        
discerned4 ,the beard is no longer      
curled and well kept1 in the words of a 
contemporary document1 wherein he is    
described as of a fine person1 well     
proportioned1 full of grace and of a    
beautiful aspect1 wearing a             

rose-coloured tunic1 short to the knee1 
although long garments were then in use4
  ,mr4 ,berenson has suggested that the 
youth in armour1 who alone among all the
 figures in ,leonardo's ,adoration of   
the ,magi in the ,louvre turns away from
 the scene and looks towards the        
spectator1 is a portrait of ,leonardo   
himself4 ,botticelli reproduced his own 
features in a figure similarly placed in
 his ,adoration of the ,magi4  ,the     
largest collection of ,leonardo da      
,vinci's drawings is in the ,royal      
,library at ,windsor ,castle4 ,they are 
not accessible to the public in general1
 but under certain conditions they may  
be examined4 ,other collections are in  
the ,louvre1 the ,british ,museum1 the  
,uffizi1 the ,royal ,library at ,turin1 
the ,venice ,academy1 and in the        
portfolios of private collectors such as
 ,m4 ,bonnat of ,paris1 and ,dr4 ,mond  
of ,london4 ,the drawings in the ,print 
,room of the ,british ,museum1 which are
 easily available to students1 include  

the remarkable ,head of a ,warrior in   
profile1 from the ,malcolm ,collection1 
which is reproduced in this volume4     
,this beautiful and minutely finished   
head and bust in silver-point belongs to
 ,leonardo's early period1 when he was  
still under the influence of his master1
 ,verrocchio4 ,indeed1 there is a       
resemblance between this arrogant       
warrior and the head of ,verrocchio's   
statue of ,colleoni at ,venice2 it has  
been suggested by ,dr4 ,gronau that this
 profile represents an effort of the    
pupil to show ,verrocchio the manner in 
which he would have handled the task4   
,be that as it may1 this drawing is a   
striking example of how1 in the hands of
 a master1 the most profuse and detailed
 decoration can be made subservient to  
the main theme4 ,the eye follows with   
delight the exquisite imaginative       
drawing in armour and helm4 ,nothing is 
insistent2 nothing is superfluous4      
,every quaint and curious detail leads  
up to the firm contour of the face4     

,leonardo saw the theme as a whole1 and 
the decorator's ingenuity has throughout
 remained subservient to the artist's   
vision4 ,it is ,war quiescent1 as       
,rodin's famous group is ,war militant4 
,the ,british ,museum also contains a   
sheet of those grotesque heads1         
specimens of which are reproduced in    
this volume1 horrible faces of men and  
women grimacing and screeching at one   
another1 with protruding lips and       
beak-like chins1 looming from the       
discoloured paper4 ,in a drawing at     
,milan there are two sketches of a      
combat1 a man on horseback fighting a   
grotesque animal1 that are startling in 
their power of arrested movement4 ,there
 are also drawings of fearful wild-fowl1
 dragons1 and the like1 snarling at one 
another and making frightful onslaught4 
,critics have tried to explain the      
reason why ,leonardo gazed into these   
gulfs1 but the explanation is probably  
nothing more than the fertility and     
fecundity of his imagination4 ,the      

grotesque and the terrible often have an
 attraction for gifted minds1 forming a 
relief from the endless quest after     
beauty and the physical strain of living
 continually on the heights4 ,rossetti  
composed verses that are not included in
 his collected works4 ,a distinguished  
living writer has confessed that the    
byways of his leisure are brightened by 
the study of criminology4 ,the late     
,arthur ,strong1 commenting on the      
grotesques by ,leonardo da ,vinci at    
,chatsworth1 contributes this curious   
and interesting theory3 ,his method was 
akin to the geometry of projection4     
,just as the shadow of a circle is an   
ellipse1 so by projecting the lines of a
 human face of a certain marked type he 
was enabled to detect and exhibit1 as in
 a shadow1 the secret but most real     
kinship between the bte humaine and the 
dog1 the ape1 or the swine1 as the case 
might be4 ,in a sheet of drawings at    
,windsor we see the same process applied
 to the head of a lion until it quickens

 into a lower canine form4  ,the late   
librarian of ,chatsworth also comments  
upon the copies and forgeries of        
drawings by ,leonardo da ,vinci that    
abound at ,chatsworth1 as in other      
collections4 ,the process of sifting the
 pictures ascribed to ,leonardo may be  
said to be complete4 ,john ,william     
,brown1 in the ,appendix to his life of 
,leonardo1 published in #ahbh1          
catalogues nearly fifty pictures from   
the hand of the master4 ,mr4 ,mc,curdy1 
in his study of the records of          
,leonardo's life1 has reduced that      
generous estimate to ten4 ,there is     
still considerable disagreement about   
some of the drawings1 but there are     
enough indubitably authentic1 a         
bewildering variety indeed1 for all     
practical purposes of study1 and to     
proclaim the abounding genius of this   
flame-like ,florentine1 whose mind was a
 universe and who painted little but    
drew much with that wonderful left hand4
 ,the fact that ,leonardo was           

left-handed1 with the result that the   
shading of his drawings usually runs    
from left to right1 and not from right  
to left1 should be evidence1 as ,morelli
 and others have pointed out1 of the    
authenticity of those drawings whose    
lines of direction run from left to     
right4 ,but this test is far from       
perfect1 as it is the first business of 
a forger to study mannerisms4 ,many of  
the drawings bear comments in his       
handwriting1 which also usually ran from
 right to left1 the famous letter to the
 ,duke of ,milan being an exception4 ,a 
pen-drawing in the ,uffizi has1 in the  
lower part1 a note from which the       
beginning has been torn away4 ,the words
 that remain are3 4 4 4 bre #adgh       
ichomiciai le #b ,vgine ,marie1 which   
may be interpreted1 ,october #adgh1 ,i  
began the two of the ,virgin ,mary4     
,most of the drawings are made with the 
pen1 others are in chalk and            
silver-point4 ,in the well-known        
,isabella d',este of the ,louvre there  

are traces of pastel1 and some of the   
sketches of drapery are drawn on fine   
linen with a brush4  ,one of ,leonardo's
 earliest drawings1 if not his first    
attempt1 is the landscape dated #adgc in
 the ,uffizi1 done when he was          
twenty-one years of age4 ,it is signed1 
and these words are inscribed in the    
left-hand top corner3 ,the day of ,s4   
,mary of the ,snow1 the fifth day of    
,august1 #adgc4  ,another drawing that  
can be assigned to a period is the      
sketch in pen and ink of a youth hanging
 from a rope with his hands fastened    
behind his back4 ,this unfortunate was  
,bernardo ,bandini1 who was hanged for  
the murder of ,giuliano de ,medici in   
#adgi4 ,it is supposed that ,leonardo   
was commissioned to paint a picture of  
the execution1 and that he made the     
drawing of ,bandini as a preparatory    
study4 ,leonardo was nothing if not     
conscientious4 ,on the margin of the    
sketch1 which is in the possession of   
,m4 ,bonnat1 is this note describing    

,bandini's costume3 ,small tan-coloured 
cap1 black satin doublet1 lined black   
jerkin1 blue coat lined with fur of     
foxes' breasts1 and the collar of the   
cloak covered with velvet speckled black
 and red2 ,bernardo di ,bandino         
,baroncelli2 black hose4  ,as we turn   
over and examine the diversified        
drawings by ,leonardo da ,vinci1 we are 
continually reminded of the passion that
 draughtsmanship was to him4 ,pen and   
pencil bear witness that his mind was   
never at rest4 ,he drew for the love of 
it2 his hand raced to obey the thronging
 pictures that his brain conceived1 and 
he drew1 not necessarily as a           
preparatory stage for the making of a   
picture1 but because draw he must4      
,despite the hundreds of drawings that  
remain as examples of his industry1     
there are no studies extant for the     
,monna ,lisa1 although it has been      
suggested that the hands from the       
,windsor ,collection reproduced in this 
volume were preparatory sketches for the

 marvellous hands of that third wife of 
a ,florentine official upon whose head  
all the ends of the world are come4     
,critics differ on this point1 but there
 is no difference of opinion as to the  
beauty of ,monna ,lisa's hands4 ,the    
right hand1 says ,mr4 ,mc,curdy1 is     
perhaps the most perfect hand that was  
ever painted4  ,probably many of the    
sheets of drawings of children1 women1  
cats1 and lambs were for ,madonna       
pictures that have been lost or         
destroyed4 ,he was never content with   
the stereotyped and conventional        
arrangement for a sacred picture1 such  
as satisfied ,francia4 ,he was ever     
curious1 as well as a seeker after      
beauty1 and life being his province1 he 
loved to intrigue the human element into
 a ,madonna and ,child motive4 ,the     
,child playing with the cat1 hugging a  
lamb1 learning his lessons at his       
mother's knee1 numbers of them testify  
to ,leonardo's direct and large-hearted 
humanity4 ,with him the ,child is always

 a child1 acting like a child4 ,in a    
drawing in the ,british ,museum he      
clutches a protesting cat in his chubby 
arms1 while the mother smiles--the      
eternal1 personal smile of ,leonardo    
that haunted him1 as it fascinates us4  
,in another drawing the ,child is       
dipping a chubby hand into a bowl of    
porridge1 and again the ,mother         
smiles--the enigmatic1 persisting smile 
of ,leonardo4 ,there are no fewer than  
twenty-seven drawings of animals on one 
sheet at ,windsor4 ,the majority are    
cats1 but in some instance his          
imagination has invented a hybrid animal
 to which no name can be given4 ,in a   
drawing at ,milan the ,child is         
apparently receiving a lesson in        
geometry--one of ,leonardo's special    
studies4 ,he is entirely wrapped up in  
geometry1 and has no patience for       
painting1 writes a correspondent to     
,isabella d',este in reply to a letter  
from her asking what ,leonardo was      
doing4 ,since he has been in ,florence1 

continues the correspondent1 he has     
worked only on one cartoon4 ,this       
represents an infant ,christ of about   
one year1 who1 freeing himself from his 
mother's arms1 seizes a lamb1 and seems 
to clasp it4  ,there is no record that  
these pictures of the ,child with cat or
 lamb1 or dropping his hand into a bowl 
of porridge1 were ever finished2 but the
 drawings were seen by the young        
,raphael1 who drew inspiration from     
them4 ,it is curious to turn from these 
imaginative designs to the literal study
 of a tree1 searched out as carefully as
 ,leighton's drawing of a lemon-tree1   
but so much bolder and so much more     
confident in treatment2 or to that      
drawing that might have been produced in
 an engineer's office1 showing a number 
of nude figures lifting a heavy cylinder
 by lever-power1 probably a design      
dating from the period when he held the 
post of military engineer to ,caesar    
,borgia4 ,during his residence at       
,pavia1 when1 among other activities1 he

 constructed the scenery for a kind of  
masque produced in honour of the        
marriage of ,gian ,galeazzo with        
,isabella of ,aragon1 and on another    
occasion arranged a tournament1 he also 
designed an apparatus of pulleys and    
cords to convey the relic of the ,sacred
 ,nail to a different position in the   
,cathedral4 ,the sketch is inscribed1   
,in the ,cathedral for the pulley of the
 ,nail of the ,cross4  ,moderns who try 
to paint without first undergoing the   
drudgery of drawing for some years in   
the schools should ponder over          
,leonardo's studies of the nude1 reading
 at the same time the chapters on       
,proportion in his ,treatise on         
,painting4 ,what whole-hearted          
pre-occupation in his work the following
 extract shows6 ,it is entitled ,of     
studying in the ,dark1 on first waking  
in the ,morning1 and before going to    
,sleep4 ,i have experienced no small    
benefit1 when in the dark and in bed1 by
 retracing in my mind the outlines of   

those forms which ,i had previously     
studied1 particularly such as had       
appeared the most difficult to          
comprehend and retain2 by this method   
they will be confirmed and treasured    
upon the memory4  ,flowers1 trees1 and  
wings he studied with the same fidelity 
and felicity that he gave to hands and  
drapery4 ,he was for ever preparing and 
experimenting1 for ever storing and     
developing his mind1 for ever increasing
 the cunning of his hands1 as if life   
were endless4 ,his sixty-seven years of 
activity were all too short for this    
giant1 who excelled in every worthy     
pursuit of mortals except commerce and  
politics4 ,a ,florentine poet of the    
,quattrocento1 who knew ,leonardo in his
 early manhood1 described him as the man
 who perhaps excels all others1 yet     
cannot tear himself away from a picture1
 and in many years scarce brings one to 
completion4 ,his mind was continually   
putting forth fresh shoots4 ,we can     
imagine him1 before beginning to paint  

the wings of the angel in his picture of
 ,the ,annunciation in the ,louvre1     
studying the ways of birds at rest and  
in flight1 and considering the problem  
of the possibility of man ever achieving
 the conquest of the air4 ,such ideas   
never came to fruition1 but there is a  
passage in his writings1 written in a   
moment of exaltation1 when he had vision
 of man floating on pinions in the      
ether1 and himself as inventor and      
originator of the triumph4 ,in that     
moment of vision of a perfected         
,santos-,dumont1 ,leonardo wrote3 ,he   
will fill the universe with wonder and  
all writings with his fame1 and will    
give deathless renown to the nest which 
witnessed his birth4  ,through all his  
dreams1 through all his scientific1     
human1 and grotesque imaginings1 he     
never ceased from the quest of beauty1  
that obsession of the true artist1 which
 he expressed so often in the faces of  
his women1 their hair and hands1 in the 
looks of children1 in the fall and fold 

of draperies1 and in the figures of     
armed knights setting forth to tourney  
or to battle4 ,one only has to recall   
the face of ,st4 ,anne in the ,louvre   
picture1 the curling1 plaited hair about
 the head of ,leda in the ,windsor      
drawing1 the strange sexless charm of   
the smile of ,st4 ,john the ,baptist in 
the ,louvre picture1 ,monna ,lisa1 the  
sceptical angel in ,the ,virgin of the  
,rocks1 and the head of ,st4 ,philip in 
the ,windsor drawing1 to be impressed   
again by the enigmatic beauty1 always   
new1 never palling1 that ,leonardo gave 
to the world4 ,in the cartoon of the    
,virgin and ,child with ,st4 ,anne which
 hangs in the ,diploma ,gallery at      
,burlington ,house1 one of the nation's 
greatest treasures1 which so few        
,londoners ever visit1 this country     
possesses a characteristic and          
unapproachable ,leonardo4 ,it differs   
materially from the picture in the      
,louvre1 the heads of the ,virgin and   
,st4 ,anne being nearly on a level2 ,st4

 ,anne is gazing at the ,virgin1 not at 
the ,child1 her hand is upraised1 the   
finger points upwards1 and the ,baptist 
is included in the composition4 ,but in 
each the face of ,st4 ,anne has the     
,leonardo inward1 extenuating smile1    
suggesting that attribute of aloofness  
of which the mediaeval schoolmen write4 
,the upward-pointing hand of ,st4 ,anne 
is almost identical with the motion of  
,st4 ,thomas's hand in ,the ,last       
,supper at ,milan1 and with the hand of 
,st4 ,john in the ,louvre4 ,comparing   
the ,diploma ,gallery cartoon with the  
finished picture in the ,louvre1 and    
with the sketch at the ,venice ,academy1
 we realise the years of labour that    
,leonardo gave to a picture before he   
would call it finished4 ,one of the     
drawings of drapery reproduced in this  
volume is an exquisite study for the    
garment that enfolds the ,virgin's limbs
 in the ,louvre picture4  ,the series of
 heads of women reproduced in these     
pages show again his love of hair1      

either flowing or in plaits1 or confined
 in strange and delicate head-dresses   
about the sweet1 severe brows4 ,and     
always the eyes of his women are cast   
down1 an attitude that he rarely gives  
to his men1 whose heads often have a    
touch of caricature1 a hint1 but never  
pushed to the extreme that he allowed   
himself in the grotesque4  ,in the bust 
of a woman in profile at ,milan we have 
a sketch that in the unflattering       
presentment of a likeness is akin to his
 remarkable drawing of ,isabella        
d',este1 now in the ,louvre4 ,the firm  
contour of the face1 the thin nose and  
round1 protruding chin1 the long neck   
and ample bosom1 betoken that on this   
occasion his eye1 not his imagination1  
held the mastery4 ,but the drawing of   
,isabella d',este is larger in          
conception1 and this grave and simple   
presentment of a distinguished lady of  
the ,italian ,renaissance is so informed
 with an assured power that it is justly
 hailed as one of ,leonardo's finest    

efforts4 ,it was made at ,mantua1 and   
was designed to serve as the study for  
the portrait of the ,marchioness which  
,leonardo never completed1 if indeed he 
ever began it4 ,five years later        
,isabella d',este wrote to ,leonardo    
reproaching him for his delay3 ,when you
 were in the country and drew our       
portrait in chalk you promised you would
 one day paint our picture in colours4  
,but ,leonardo was not1 like ,mantegna1 
ductile in the hands of the             
,marchioness4 ,he did not succumb to her
 blandishments4 ,there is no record that
 he ever gratified the lady by painting 
a certain small work that she made      
petition for--a little picture of the   
,madonna full of faith and sweetness1   
just as his nature would enable him to  
conceive her4 ,leonardo had pursuits    
more engrossing than the making of a    
picture to please the vanity even of so 
great a lady as the ,marchioness of     
,mantua4  ,the flame of ,leonardo's     
imagination did not burn with the desire

 to provide little pictures of the      
,madonna full of faith and sweetness4   
,he must do things in his own way1 and  
that way would inspire him to produce   
such a drawing as the head of a young   
,bacchus with long1 curling hair1       
clothed in a costume1 just peeping from 
the sketch1 of a similar material to the
 dress of ,isabella d',este2 or a       
kneeling ,leda1 such a drawing as we    
find at ,chatsworth1 showing how the    
artist gradually evolved the design for 
the final picture of ,leda1 which was   
seen in the collection of ,king ,francis
 at ,fontainebleau1 but is now lost4    
,here1 too1 the eyes of the woman are   
downcast4 ,she turns to the children who
 are breaking from the eggs1 while one  
of her arms clasps the swan4 ,the broken
 shells1 and the children just          
scrambling into existence1 are as       
characteristic of ,leonardo's passion   
for the episodes of life as the ,child  
playing with the cat1 or dipping his    
fist into the bowl of porridge4 ,leda is

 the only mythological picture that he  
painted4 ,the preparatory drawings like 
the drawings for others of his lost or  
destroyed works1 such as the ,sforza    
,statue1 and the ,battle of the         
,standard are numerous4 ,there is no    
mistaking the drawings for the ,sforza  
statue1 although it is not easy to      
decide which of the many designs of     
equestrian figures were for the ,statue 
of ,francesco ,sforza1 and which for the
 ,trivulzio ,monument4 ,one of the      
,windsor drawings shows no fewer than   
four sketches on one sheet for the group
 of horse and rider1 which1 we are told1
 was twenty-six feet high4 ,it would    
seem that ,leonardo's first intention   
was to make ,francesco ,sforza's charger
 trampling on a fallen enemy1 but that  
he abandoned this tremendous conception 
for a quieter design4 ,it is clear from 
contemporary records that ,leonardo     
spent sixteen years over the statue3    
to-day no trace of it1 except in the    
drawings1 remains4 ,there is some doubt 

as to whether it was ever successfully  
cast in bronze1 which explains ,michael 
,angelo's taunt that after ,leonardo had
 finished the model he was unable to    
cast it4 ,probably it was ,leonardo's   
model that was destroyed1 or at any rate
 severely damaged1 when the ,french     
entered ,milan in #aejj4 ,fra ,sabba da 
,castiglione wrote at the time3 ,i have 
to record--and ,i cannot speak of it    
without grief and indignation--so noble 
and masterly a work made a target by the
 ,gascon bowmen4  ,in his writings      
,leonardo describes war as a bestial    
frenzy1 and in this grand conception of 
a rearing horse trampling upon a        
warrior1 who is trying to protect       
himself with his shield1 it was perhaps 
his intention to pillory the            
horror-of-war1 while at the same time   
producing a heroic design4 ,the splendid
 vigour of this group1 and of the       
maddened figures in the ,battle of      
,anghiari1 stimulate us even in the     
slight sketches4 ,we hear the shouts of 

barbaric warfare as we draw them from   
their quiet resting-places in orderly   
portfolios4 ,the bestial frenzy of war  
was never depicted with greater force   
than in ,leonardo's studies for the last
 ,cartoon for the ,battle of ,anghiari1 
where horses gnash at each other1 and   
soldiers1 filled with the lust of war1  
scream incoherent cries4 ,the heads of  
two men in a drawing in the ,buda-,pest 
,gallery1 in the very act of slaying1   
mouths wide open1 breathing fury1 are   
almost painful to look upon4 ,leonardo  
abandoned this battle picture while     
still in the midst of the task1 as if   
disgusted with continuing to portray the
 bestial frenzy4 ,but the horses in the 
battle pictures probably interested him4
 ,there is a galloping horse in a       
drawing of ,horsemen and ,soldiers at   
,windsor that reveals a marvellous      
knowledge of the action of the horse at 
high speed4 ,indeed1 the horse was one  
of ,leonardo's favourite subjects4      
,vasari states that a book of such      

studies was destroyed when the ,french  
entered ,milan4 ,in the large and minute
 drawing that he made as a preparatory  
study for the background of his picture 
of ,the ,adoration of the ,magi1 which  
was changed and curtailed so much in the
 final composition1 there are horses1   
curvetting and prancing1 and in the     
foreground a camel is seen reposing4    
,actuality is introduced in the persons 
of the retainers of the kings1 busy with
 their own affairs1 amusing their       
leisure with a mock combat4 ,in the     
drawing in the ,uffizi1 of which we give
 a reproduction1 the retainers are shown
 below the great double staircase       
engaged in a joust4 ,one wonders if     
,velasquez1 who did not reach his usual 
standard of perfection when he drew a   
prancing steed1 ever saw any of         
,leonardo's drawings of resolute and    
spirited horses4  ,velasquez1 when he   
painted the head of ,christ in his      
,crucifixion at ,madrid1 veiled the face
 with the long hair as if he shrank from

 attempting to portray the sacred       
features1 although nothing deterred him 
from painting the head boldly and freely
 in his ,christ at the ,column4 ,history
 tells of a similar meticulous modesty  
on the part of ,leonardo in regard to   
the head of the central figure in his   
,last ,supper1 which he left unfinished1
 on the suggestion of ,zenale1 that     
could not surpass the majesty of certain
 of the ,apostles' heads4  ,several     
preliminary studies for ,the ,last      
,supper exist1 many of which modern     
criticism refuses to accept as          
authentic4 ,the most prominent in the   
eye of the world is the pastel of the   
head of ,christ in the ,brera at ,milan4
 ,of the beauty of the head1 feminine in
 its softness and sadness1 there cannot 
be two opinions1 but it has not the     
sense of virility of the head in the    
,milan fresco1 although the pose of the 
drooping face and the downcast eyes are 
identical4 ,the authorities of the      
,brera ,gallery at ,milan assign the    

pastel head to ,leonardo1 and ,dr4      
,richter describes it as a genuine      
half-life size study in pencil for a    
head of ,christ1 which is in a          
deplorable state of preservation4 ,in   
,mr4 ,mc,curdy's opinion1 the ,brera    
pastel in its present state is none of  
his1 whatever its inception may have    
been1 and of that it is impossible to   
judge4 ,but whatever vicissitudes of    
retouching the ,brera pastel may have   
undergone1 it remains a beautiful thing4
 ,the full-sized heads at ,weimar1 bold 
and inspiriting drawings1 of ,judas and 
,st4 ,peter1 ,st4 ,thomas and ,st4      
,james the ,elder1 ,st4 ,andrew1 and    
,st4 ,bartholomew are not by ,leonardo4 
,there is no doubt about the            
authenticity of the heads of the        
,apostles in the ,windsor ,collection1  
or of the two preparatory sketches for  
the composition of ,the ,last ,supper   
also at ,windsor1 or of the drawing in  
red chalk at ,venice1 containing        
,leonardo's hand-writing1 in which the  

figure of ,st4 ,john is shown           
grief-stricken1 his body thrown forward 
upon the table1 his face hidden at the  
mere idea of the awful words1 ,one of   
you shall betray me4  ,leonardo's will1 
executed on ,april #bc1 #aeai1 in the   
chateau of ,cloux1 near ,amboise1 is    
extant4 ,he commends his soul to ,god1  
orders the celebration of four high     
masses and thirty low masses1 and wills 
his vineyard1 without the walls of      
,milan1 to ,salai and ,battista de      
,villanis4 ,in taking leave of this     
restless1 richly endowed and rare       
spirit1 we turn again to the last lines 
of ,pater's essay1 and with him wonder  
how the great ,florentine experienced   
the last curiosity4 ,then1 perhaps1 for 
the mind is always alert when thinking  
of ,leonardo1 we recall a note in one of
 his manuscripts wherein he expresses   
his conviction that some day with the   
help of steam a boat may be set in      
motion1 and another passage in his      
handwriting1 perhaps really nearer to   

his real self than the order for those  
four high and thirty low masses--this3  
,when ,i thought ,i was learning to     
live1 ,i was but learning to die4       
,illustrations