IlSole24ORE - ARTE- written by Tiziana Pikler on July 15th 2018
Leonardo da Vinci: his first pictorial work is an Archangel Gabriel Will the books of art history be rewritten? Possible. What is certain is that the discovery announced by Professor Ernesto Solari, a well-known scholar of Leonardo da Vinci, and the graphologist Ivana Rosa Bonfantino, a few months from the 500th anniversary of the artist's death, is one of those destined to be discussed. Leonardo's first pictorial work seems to no longer be the "Virgin of the Rocks" (1486), just as the artist's first self-portrait would not be the one that appears in the "Adoration of the Magi" (1481-82). Both these 'first times' are in fact swept away by the Archangel Gabriel made on a square, a square tile (hence the name) in glazed earthenware of the size of 20 × 20 cm and a thickness of 1.2 cm. This would therefore be the first pictorial work of Leonardo for the two scholars, the first also to bring back the artist's autograph signature which reads, from left to right, on the face of the Archangel together with the date of realization (1471) and to what it was presented as the first rebus of the vinciano, an interweaving of letters and numbers under its name including the 52 which would indicate the date of birth of the artist, the number 72 of the Archangel Gabriel as well as the year in which Leonardo started his activity. "The literal wording of the puzzle is: I have portrayed myself as Archangel Gabriel," explained Solari. Not only. On the lower edge of the square there is also an acronym "LDV ib" which would indicate the initials of the abbreviated artist and, in a specular way, his own locality of origin: Lionardo da Vinci di Vinci. Another misunderstanding would also concern the machine with which the artist would have made the tile, in April 1471 in the furnace of his grandfather in Baccareto, previously intended as a musical instrument. According to the scholar, Leonardo kept the painting with him until 1499, when he gave it to the duchess of Amalfi, Giovanna d'Aragona, who later gave it, together with some land, to the noble Fenicia family of Ravello, whose heirs - a branch of the Ruvo di Puglia family - today they hold the work. The continuous debate on who really is the famous "Gioconda" of the Louvre is also part of this donation. "For me, as for other scholars, it can not be the noblewoman Lisa Gherardini. And if it were, instead, just Giovanna D'Aragona? ", Solari re-launches. The artistic peculiarities of the Archangel Gabriel that led the scholar to bring back the thickness of the color, the chiaroscuro, the curl of the hair, the left-handed part of the jaw and neck, as well as the fact that a single line has completely traced the profile. Moreover, this Archangel is not idealized and the peacock's wings that distinguish the figure indicate its immortality. The artist, then, already in 1471, would have been aware of his own genius and with this work he declared he wanted to reach eternity in painting. "The value of this work? It is not reputable. I only hope that the Italian state will not let it slip away ", concludes Solari.
Leonardo da Vinci: his first pictorial work is an Archangel Gabriel Will the books of art history be rewritten? Possible. What is certain is that the discovery announced by Professor Ernesto Solari, a well-known scholar of Leonardo da Vinci, and the graphologist Ivana Rosa Bonfantino, a few months from the 500th anniversary of the artist's death, is one of those destined to be discussed. Leonardo's first pictorial work seems to no longer be the "Virgin of the Rocks" (1486), just as the artist's first self-portrait would not be the one that appears in the "Adoration of the Magi" (1481-82). Both these 'first times' are in fact swept away by the Archangel Gabriel made on a square, a square tile (hence the name) in glazed earthenware of the size of 20 × 20 cm and a thickness of 1.2 cm. This would therefore be the first pictorial work of Leonardo for the two scholars, the first also to bring back the artist's autograph signature which reads, from left to right, on the face of the Archangel together with the date of realization (1471) and to what it was presented as the first rebus of the vinciano, an interweaving of letters and numbers under its name including the 52 which would indicate the date of birth of the artist, the number 72 of the Archangel Gabriel as well as the year in which Leonardo started his activity. "The literal wording of the puzzle is: I have portrayed myself as Archangel Gabriel," explained Solari. Not only. On the lower edge of the square there is also an acronym "LDV ib" which would indicate the initials of the abbreviated artist and, in a specular way, his own locality of origin: Lionardo da Vinci di Vinci. Another misunderstanding would also concern the machine with which the artist would have made the tile, in April 1471 in the furnace of his grandfather in Baccareto, previously intended as a musical instrument. According to the scholar, Leonardo kept the painting with him until 1499, when he gave it to the duchess of Amalfi, Giovanna d'Aragona, who later gave it, together with some land, to the noble Fenicia family of Ravello, whose heirs - a branch of the Ruvo di Puglia family - today they hold the work. The continuous debate on who really is the famous "Gioconda" of the Louvre is also part of this donation. "For me, as for other scholars, it can not be the noblewoman Lisa Gherardini. And if it were, instead, just Giovanna D'Aragona? ", Solari re-launches. The artistic peculiarities of the Archangel Gabriel that led the scholar to bring back the thickness of the color, the chiaroscuro, the curl of the hair, the left-handed part of the jaw and neck, as well as the fact that a single line has completely traced the profile. Moreover, this Archangel is not idealized and the peacock's wings that distinguish the figure indicate its immortality. The artist, then, already in 1471, would have been aware of his own genius and with this work he declared he wanted to reach eternity in painting. "The value of this work? It is not reputable. I only hope that the Italian state will not let it slip away ", concludes Solari.
Anteprima Mondiale a Sorratento, il 15 Marzo prossimo viene presentata la prestigiosa medaglia celebrativa di Leonardo da Vinci che diffusa sul mercato mondiale in preparazione del 500° anniversario della morte del grande genio italiano. .
Oltre alla sua eccezionale bellezza e magia determinata dal fatto che essa racchiude l' azione di Leonardo, il volto è il suo Arcangelo Gabriele, la sua sigla LDV, la data 1471, mentre sul rovescio si può ammirare il magico retro della sua piastrella e la stessa firma, da Vinci Lionardo esistente sulla mandibola dell' Arcangelo i cui capelli, una vera e propria cascata, altro non sono che la trasposizione dei suoi studi sul movimento delle acque da esso poi rriportato nei suoi codici.
La medaglia ha una spessa placcatura d'oro 24 carati, la tiratura è limitata, il suo diametro è è di 28 millimetri con spessore di due, il suo peso è di sette grammi