The Italian polymath Leonardo da Vinci (1452–1519) was the founding figure of the High Renaissance, and exhibited enormous influence on subsequent artists. Only around eight major works—The Adoration of the Magi, Saint Jerome in the Wilderness, the Louvre Virgin of the Rocks, The Last Supper, the ceiling of the Sala delle Asse, The Virgin and Child with Saint Anne and Saint John the Baptist, The Virgin and Child with Saint Anne and the Mona Lisa—are universally attributed to him, and have aroused little or no controversy in the past. Ten additional works are now widely attributed to his oeuvre, though most have previously incited considerable controversy or doubt: the Annunciation, Madonna of the Carnation, The Baptism of Christ (with his teacher, Verrocchio), Ginevra de' Benci, the Benois Madonna, the Portrait of a Musician (with possible studio assistance), the Lady with an Ermine, La Belle Ferronnière, the London Virgin of the Rocks (with studio assistance), the Portrait of Isabella d'Este and Saint John the Baptist.
Other attributions are more complicated. La Scapigliata appears to be attributed by most scholars, but some prominent specialists are silent on the issue. Salvator Mundis attribution remains extremely controversial, and the extensive nature of the restoration may never allow a definitive resolution. The small number of surviving paintings is due in part to Leonardo's habit of disastrous experimentation with new techniques and his chronic procrastination, resulting in many incomplete works. It is thought that he created many more works that are now lost, though records and copies have survived for some.
In addition to his paintings, there are eleven surviving manuscripts of Leonardo da Vinci's notes and drawings, amounting to thousands of pages in total. There are numerous other works with disputed attributions to Leonardo, which have failed, as of yet, to achieve thorough scholarly approval.
Key: Collaborative work Possibly collaborative work
| Universally accepted | Unanimously accepted works | |
|---|---|---|
| Widely accepted | Accepted by large majority of modern scholars; controversial in the past | |
| Generally accepted | Accepted by most modern scholars; still controversial |
| The Annunciation | Oil and tempera on poplar panel | NaNdisp=br | data-sort-value="Florence, Uffizi" | Uffizi, Florence | |
Widely accepted Generally thought to be the earliest extant work by Leonardo. Traditionally attributed to Verrocchio until 1869. It is now almost universally attributed to Leonardo. Attribution proposed by Liphart; accepted by Bode, Lubke, Muller-Walde, Berenson, Clark, Goldscheider and others. | |||||
| Madonna of the Carnation | Oil on poplar panel | NaNdisp=br | data-sort-value="Munich, Alte Pinakothek" | Alte Pinakothek, Munich | |
Widely accepted Generally accepted as a Leonardo, but has some overpainting possibly by a Flemish artist. | |||||
| The Baptism of Christ | Oil and tempera on poplar panel | NaNdisp=br | data-sort-value="Florence, Uffizi" | ||
Widely accepted as by Verrocchio and Leonardo Painted mainly by Andrea del Verrocchio; Leonardo's contributions include angel on the left-hand side, some of the background landscape and the torso of Christ. | |||||
| Ginevra de' Benci | Oil and tempera on poplar panel | NaNdisp=br | data-sort-value="Washington, D.C., National Gallery of Art" | National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C. | |
Widely accepted While controversial in the past, modern scholarship widely attributes the work to Leonardo. The attribution of Lady with an Ermine supports the attribution of this painting. | |||||
| Benois Madonna | Oil on wood panel, transferred to canvas | NaNdisp=br | data-sort-value="Saint Petersburg, Hermitage" | Hermitage, Saint Petersburg | |
Widely accepted | |||||
| The Adoration of the Magi | Oil (underpainting) on wood panel | NaNdisp=br | data-sort-value="Florence, Uffizi" | Uffizi, Florence | |
Universally accepted[1] Forensic and scientific analysis by Maurizio Seracini now proves that at least two layers of varnish, mainly in the lower half of the painting, were applied in the 18th–19th centuries. | |||||
| Saint Jerome in the Wilderness | Tempera and oil on walnut panel | NaNdisp=br | Vatican Museums | ||
Universally accepted[2] | |||||
| Madonna Litta | Tempera (and oil) on poplar panel | NaNdisp=br | data-sort-value="Saint Petersburg, Hermitage" | Hermitage, Saint Petersburg | |
Widely accepted Martin Kemp claims that the National Gallery, London, exhibited the Madonna Litta on loan from the Hermitage as an autograph work, even though the gallery's own curators believed it to be by a pupil, Giovanni Antonio Boltraffio.[3] | |||||
| Virgin of the Rocks (Louvre version) | Oil on wood panel, transferred to canvas | NaNdisp=br | data-sort-value="Paris, Louvre" | Louvre, Paris | |
Universally accepted[4] | |||||
| Portrait of a Musician | Oil (and tempera?) on walnut panel | NaNdisp=br | data-sort-value="Milan, Pinacoteca Ambrosiana" | Pinacoteca Ambrosiana, Milan | |
Widely accepted Widely accepted that Leonardo painted the figure's face. Some scholars suggest the body to be the work of his pupils, Giovanni Antonio Boltraffio and Giovanni Ambrogio de Predis | |||||
| Lady with an Ermine | Oil on walnut panel | NaNdisp=br | data-sort-value="Kraków, Czartoryski Museum" | Czartoryski Museum, Kraków | |
Widely accepted While controversial in the past, modern scholarship widely attributes the work to Leonardo. The attribution of Ginevra de' Benci supports the attribution of this painting. | |||||
| La Belle Ferronnière | Oil on walnut panel | NaNdisp=br | data-sort-value="Paris, Louvre" | Louvre, Paris | |
Widely accepted Modern scholars still debate the attribution and it is not as widely accepted as other portraits like Ginevra de' Benci, Portrait of a Musician, and Lady with an Ermine. | |||||
| Virgin of the Rocks (London version) | Oil on parqueted poplar panel | NaNdisp=br | data-sort-value="London, National Gallery" | National Gallery, London | |
Generally accepted Generally accepted as postdating the version in the Louvre, and produced in collaboration with Ambrogio de Predis and perhaps others. Some consider it the work of Leonardo's workshop under his direction. The date is not universally agreed. | |||||
| The Last Supper | Tempera on gesso, pitch and mastic | NaNdisp=br | data-sort-value="Milan, Convent of Santa Maria delle Grazie" | Convent of Santa Maria delle Grazie, Milan | |
Universally accepted[5] | |||||
| Sala delle Asse | Tempera on plaster | data-sort-value="Miilan, Castello Sforzesco" | Castello Sforzesco, Milan | ||
Universally accepted[6] | |||||
| The Virgin and Child with Saint Anne and Saint John the Baptist | Charcoal, black and white chalk on tinted paper, mounted on canvas | NaNdisp=br | data-sort-value="London, National Gallery" | National Gallery, London | |
Universally accepted[7] | |||||
| Portrait of Isabella d'Este | Black and red chalk, yellow pastel chalk on paper | NaNdisp=br | data-sort-value="Paris, Louvre" | Louvre, Paris | |
Widely accepted Letters document at least two portrait drawings of Isabella d'Este and, in 1501–1506, her requests to execute the promised portrait in colour. | |||||
| Madonna of the Yarnwinder (The Buccleuch Madonna) | Oil on walnut panel | NaNdisp=br | data-sort-value="Edinburgh, Scottish National Gallery" | ||
Generally accepted as by Leonardo and another artist Leonardo was documented as working on a painting of this subject in Florence in 1501; it appears to have been delivered to its patron in 1507. This and the Lansdowne Madonna are the most likely candidates for being that work, but neither is considered to be wholly autograph. Scientific examination has revealed "strikingly complex and similar" underdrawings in both versions, suggesting that Leonardo was involved in the making of both. The use of walnut wood suggests the earlier terminus post quem of 1499, as Leonardo's Milanese paintings are on this support. | |||||
| Salvator Mundi | Oil on wood panel | NaNdisp=br | Unknown | ||
Generally accepted Previously presumed to be a later copy of the lost original painting. Purchased in 2005 and restored, it has gained only few acceptance as Leonardo's original. Pentimenti (changes to the composition) were found in the thumb of Christ's right hand and elsewhere which are indicators of the painting's status as an "original". The painting set a new record for sale price (US$450 million) when auctioned by Christie's in 2017.[8] [9] Matthew Landrus considers it to be primarily the work of Bernardino Luini.[10] In the 2021 documentary The Lost Leonardo, Frank Zöllner said: "You have the old parts of the painting which are original—these are by pupils—and the new parts of the painting, which look like Leonardo, but they are by the restorer. In some part, it's a masterpiece by Dianne Modestini".[11] In 2021, the Spanish Prado downgraded the painting to a partial attribution.[12] [13] In 2022, the Encyclopædia Britannica noted: "no official record of the painting's attribution officially exists".[14] | |||||
| Madonna of the Yarnwinder (The Lansdowne Madonna) | Oil on wood panel (transferred to canvas and later re-laid on panel) | NaNdisp=br | data-sort-value="New York City, private collection" | Private collection, New York City | |
Generally accepted as having an underdrawing by Leonardo | |||||
| The Virgin and Child with Saint Anne | Oil on wood panel | NaNdisp=br | data-sort-value="Paris, Louvre" | Louvre, Paris | |
Universally accepted[15] | |||||
| Mona Lisa | Oil on cottonwood (poplar) panel | NaNdisp=br | data-sort-value="Paris, Louvre" | Louvre, Paris | |
Universally accepted[16] A drawing by Giovanni Ambrogio Figino depicting an elderly Leonardo with his right arm assuaged by cloth[17] and a record of an October 1517 visit by Louis d'Aragon, confirm an account of Leonardo's right hand being paralytic at the age of 65,[18] which may indicate why he left works such as the Mona Lisa unfinished.[19] [20] | |||||
| La Scapigliata | Earth, amber and white lead on wood panel | NaNdisp=br | data-sort-value="Parma, Galleria Nazionale" | Galleria Nazionale, Parma | |
Generally accepted | |||||
| Saint John the Baptist | Oil on walnut panel | NaNdisp=br | data-sort-value="Paris, Louvre" | Louvre, Paris | |
Widely accepted While controversial in the past, modern scholarship widely attributes the work to Leonardo. Scientific evidence in the second half of the 20th century has furthered this attribution. | |||||
| Abbreviation(s) | Pages | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Codex Atlanticus | 1478–1519 | C.A. | 1,119 | data-sort-value="Milan, Pinacoteca Ambrosiana" | Pinacoteca Ambrosiana, Milan |
Giant crossbow (C.A.149b-r/53v-b) | 12 volumes, collated by the sculptor Pompeo Leoni. | ||||
| Codex Windsor | 1478–1518 | W. | 153 | data-sort-value="Windsor, Royal Collection" | Royal Collection, Windsor |
Fetus in the womb < | --title based on Zoellner, no. 373-->(W.19102r) | These drawings were pasted into an album by Pompeo Leoni, probably entered the English royal collection in the reign of Charles II, and were removed from their binding in the 19th century. | |||
| Codex Arundel | 1480–1518 | B.L., Arundel MS. or Br.M. | 283 | data-sort-value="London, British Library" | British Library, London |
Diving apparatus (B.L.24v) | |||||
| Codex Trivulzianus | Triv. | 55 (originally 62) | data-sort-value="Milan, Castello Sforzesco, Biblioteca Trivulziana" | Biblioteca Trivulziana, Castello Sforzesco, Milan | |
List with a profile portrait (Triv.30r) | |||||
| Codex Forster | 1487–1505 | Forster I, II and III (including I1, I2 and II2); formerly known as S.K.M.I, II and III | 354 | data-sort-value="London, Victoria and Albert Museum" | Victoria and Albert Museum, London |
| < | --not in Zoellner?--> Determining the volume of regular and irregular solids (Forster I.7r) | Five pocket notebooks bound into three volumes, here listed in chronological order: | |||
| Paris Manuscripts | 1488–1505 | A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H (including H1, H2 and H3), I (including I1 and I2), K (including K1, K2 and K3), L and M | more than 2,500 | data-sort-value="Paris, Bibliothèque de l'Institut de France" | Bibliothèque de l'Institut de France, Paris |
Aerial screw (detail of B.83v) < | --caption below per Zoellner, no. 486--> Vertically standing bird's-winged flying machine (B.80r) | 12 volumes, here listed in chronological order: | |||
| Codex Madrid | 1490s–1504 | Madrid I and Madrid II | data-sort-value="Madrid, Biblioteca Nacional" | Biblioteca Nacional de España, Madrid | |
| < | --caption per Zoellner, no. 72--> Drawing of the ironwork casting mould for the head of the Sforza Horse (Madrid II.156v–157r) | Two volumes, rediscovered in 1966: | |||
| Codex Ashburnham | Ash.I. or B.N.2037 (formerly part of MS.B.); Ash.II or B.N.2038 (formerly part of MS.A.) | data-sort-value="Paris, Bibliothèque de l'Institut de France" | Bibliothèque de l'Institut de France, Paris | ||
| < | --caption per Zoellner, no. 486--> Studies for a building on a centralized plan (Ash.I.5v) | Two volumes, taken out of Paris Manuscripts A and B and sold to the Earl of Ashburnham, who returned them to Paris in 1890. | |||
| Codex on the Flight of Birds | dated 1505 | Turin | 18 | data-sort-value="Turin, Biblioteca Reale" | Biblioteca Reale, Turin |
| < | --caption based on Zoellner, no. 623--> Notes on the position of a bird in flight in relationship to the wind (Turin.8r) | Originally part of Paris Manuscript B; probably stolen by Count Guglielmo Libri in around 1840–1847. | |||
| Codex Leicester | 1506–1510 | Leic. | 72 | data-sort-value="United States, private collection" | Collection of Bill Gates, Seattle (tours internationally) |
| < | --caption based on Zoellner, no. 647--> Studies of the illumination of the moon (Leic.1A (1r)) | ||||
| Codex Urbinas and libro A | Urb. and L°A. | data-sort-value="Vatican City, Bilioteca Apostolica" | Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana | ||
An anthology of writings by Leonardo compiled after his death by his pupil Francesco Melzi. An abridged version was published in 1651 as a treatise on painting (Trattato della Pittura).[21] | |||||
| Last known location | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adam and Eve | Watercolor cartoon for a tapestry | In the collection of Ottaviano de' Medici during Vasari's lifetime (1511–1574) | ||
Drawing by Francesco di Giorgio Martini, possibly based on Leonardo's cartoon | Described in great detail by Giorgio Vasari and the Anonimo Gaddiano. Painted for the King of Portugal, it was in the collection of Ottaviano de' Medici in Vasari's lifetime. The composition might have inspired a drawing by Francesco di Giorgio Martini in the Christ Church Picture Gallery, Oxford. | |||
| Dragon shield | Painted shield | Unknown | ||
A juvenile work known only from accounts by Giorgio Vasari and the Anonimo Gaddiano. Vasari stated that it was sold by Leonardo's father Ser Piero da Vinci to merchants, who then sold it on to the Duke of Milan. | ||||
| The Head of Medusa | Youthful work | Oil on panel | In the collection of Cosimo I de' Medici during Vasari's lifetime (1511–1574) | |
A juvenile work only known from an account by Giorgio Vasari. A Flemish painting of this subject of in the Uffizi, Florence, was once mistakenly thought to be this work. | ||||
| San Bernardo Altarpiece | Commissioned 10 January 1478 | Oil on panel | Unknown | |
A commission for the chapel in the Palazzo della Signoria, Florence, allocated to Leonardo on 10 January 1478 but never completed. The commission had originally been given to Piero del Pollaiuolo on 24 December 1477; its reallocation might have been arranged by Leonardo's father, who was a notary to the Signoria. After Leonardo's failure to fulfill the commission it was given to Domenico Ghirlandaio on 20 May 1483, but he did not complete the work either. It is sometimes mistakenly said that a Virgin and Child with Saints in the Uffizi by Filippino Lippi was the work finally delivered to the chapel, but this was painted for the Sala dei Dugento (council hall) of the palace. | ||||
| The Battle of Anghiari | Commissioned 4 May 1504 | Mural painting | Still visible in 1549 | |
Copy by Peter Paul Rubens | Covered up by frescoes by Vasari, beginning in 1563. The remains of Leonardo's fresco may have been discovered in the Salone dei Cinquecento.[22] | |||
| Leda and the Swan | Oil painting | Recorded by Cassiano dal Pozzo as being at the Palace of Fontainebleau in 1625. | ||
Copy by Cesare da Sesto | There are nine known copies of the painting, including:
| |||
| Angel of the Annunciation | Oil painting | In Duke Cosimo I de' Medici's palace during Vasari's lifetime (1511–1574) | ||
The Incarnate Angel, satirical copy | The painting is described by Vasari. A drawing survives among studies for the Battle of Anghiari (see below). The drawing at left, known as The Incarnate Angel, is a satirical copy, by Leonardo.[23] There are some extant copies of the subject by Leonardeschi, including:
| |||
Key: Supposedly collaborative work
| Madonna and Child with a Pomegranate | probably | Oil on wood | NaNdisp=br | data-sort-value="Washington, D.C., National Gallery of Art" | National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C. |
Previously attributed to Verrocchio or Lorenzo di Credi. Most critics have considered the anatomy of the Christ Child to be so poor as to discourage firm attribution to Leonardo, but some believe that it is a work of his youth. This attribution was made by Suida in 1929. Other art historians such as Shearman and Morelli attribute the work to Verrocchio. Daniel Arasse discusses this painting as a youthful work by Leonardo in his monograph of 1997.[25] | |||||
| Tobias and the Angel | [26] | Egg tempera on poplar | NaNdisp=br | data-sort-value="London, National Gallery' | National Gallery, London |
Workshop of Verrocchio, with a possible contribution by Leonardo Martin Kemp suggests that Leonardo may have painted some part of this work, most likely the fish. David Alan Brown, of the National Gallery in Washington, attributes the painting of the dog to him as well. | |||||
| The Holy Infants Embracing | |||||
Several versions in private collections. | |||||
| Portrait of a Lady in Profile | Tempera and oil on panel | NaNdisp=br | Pinacoteca Ambrosiana, Milan | ||
Generally attributed to Ambrogio de Predis. According to Martin Kemp, Leonardo may have been responsible for "laying down the basis of the image", based on "[t]he quality of drawing in the head". | |||||
| La Bella Principessa | 1495–1496 (Kemp) | Bodycolour (pastel) on vellum | NaNdisp=br | data-sort-value="Switzerland, private collection" | Private collection, Switzerland |
Identified as a Leonardo by Martin Kemp on stylistic grounds, and confirmed using the evidence of a fingerprint.[27] Other experts have not agreed with this attribution. As of 2010 the methods used to analyse the fingerprint have come into question.[28] The presence of holes in the page shows that it was once part of the Sforziada, a manuscript kept in Warsaw; this fact points to its originality. | |||||
| Virgin of the Rocks Chéramy | (Pedretti) | Oil on wood panel, transferred to canvas | NaNdisp=br | data-sort-value="Switzerland, private collection" | Private collection, Switzerland |
Attributed to Leonardo and his workshop by Carlo Pedretti;[29] believed by others to be a copy of the Virgin of the Rocks by Leonardo's student Giampietrino. Mentioned by Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres in 1845 and by Pierre Puvis de Chavannes; both were convinced that it was an original work by Leonardo. | |||||
| Madonna and Child with St Joseph or Adoration of the Christ Child | between 1495 and 1500 | Tempera on panel | NaN87 | data-sort-value="Rome, Galleria Borghese" | Galleria Borghese, Rome |
Previously attributed to Fra Bartolomeo. After recent cleaning, the Galleria Borghese sought attribution as a youthful work by Leonardo, based on the presence of a fingerprint similar to one that appears in the Lady with an Ermine. Result of investigation not available.[30] --> | |||||
| Young Christ | Terracotta | Private collection | |||
The bust is said by Kemp to be the most likely candidate for a surviving sculpture by Leonardo. | |||||
| Portrait of Luca Pacioli | Tempera on panel | NaNdisp=br | data-sort-value="Naples, Museo di Capodimonte" | Museo di Capodimonte, Naples | |
The painting has been generally attributed to Jacopo de' Barbari due to the presence of a cartouche with a cryptic inscription resembling his name, but some attribute the painting (at least partially) to Leonardo, who began collaborating with Pacioli when the latter moved to Milan in 1496.[31] [32] Leonardo illustrated Archimedean solids, including the rhombicuboctahedron (pictured in the portrait), in Pacioli's Divina proportione (1509).[33] According to one scholar, in the rhombicuboctahedron "we surely see the ineffable left hand of Leonardo da Vinci, who drew the superb pictures for De divina proportione, which, moreover, hang from a string ..."[34] | |||||
| Christ Carrying the Cross | Oil on poplar | data-sort-value="San Francisco, private collection" | Private collection, San Francisco | ||
Previously attributed by Sotheby's to Gian Francesco Maineri.[35] [36] Attributed to Leonardo by its former owner. Attribution based on the similarity of the tormentors of Christ to drawings made by Rubens of the Battle of Anghiari. According to Forbes magazine, Carlo Pedretti said that he knew of three similar paintings and "[a]ll four paintings, he believed, were likely the work of Leonardo's studio assistants and perhaps even the master himself." | |||||
| Isleworth Mona Lisa | Oil on canvas | NaNdisp=br | data-sort-value="Switzerland, private collection" | Private collection, Switzerland | |
Its proponents claim that this is the earlier of two versions of the Mona Lisa, painted for Francesco del Giocondo (husband of Lisa) in 1503, and that the Louvre version was painted for Giuliano de' Medici in 1517.[37] | |||||
| Horse and Rider | (Pedretti 1985)[38] (Solari 2016)[39] | Beeswax | data-sort-value="London, private collection" | Private collection, London | |
Fragmentary wax statuette in a private collection in London, formerly in the Sangiorgi Collection in Rome; said to have come from the Melzi estate at Vaprio d'Adda.[40] [41] Carlo Pedretti in 1985 considered it to be an autograph work by Leonardo,[42] [43] and Martin Kemp, after personally examining the wax model wrote in 1992, "My overall conclusion is that I would not eliminate an attribution to Leonardo."[44] The attribution has been criticized by various other art historians[45] [46] [47] and publications, citing a lack of hard evidence or documentation.[48] [49] [50] | |||||
| Lucan portrait of Leonardo da Vinci | Tempera grassa on poplar | NaNdisp=br | data-sort-value="Vaglio Basilicata, Museo delle Antiche Genti di Lucania" | Museo delle Antiche Genti di Lucania, Vaglio Basilicata | |
A painting discovered in 2008 near Naples, which closely resembles the Uffizi's 17th-century copy of the "Self-portrait of Leonardo da Vinci", is currently undergoing restoration and investigation. A date in the late 15th or 16th centuries has been confirmed by scientific testing. Fingerprints match those found on the Lady with an Ermine. Alternatively attributed to Cristofano dell'Altissimo.[51] | |||||
| Portrait of a Man in Red Chalk | Red chalk on paper | NaNdisp=br | data-sort-value="Turin, Biblioteca Reale" | Biblioteca Reale, Turin | |
Accepted by some scholars, but not universally accepted.[52] [53] | |||||
| Bacchus | , later repainted and altered | Oil on walnut panel transferred to canvas | NaNdisp=br | data-sort-value="Paris, Louvre" | Louvre, Paris |
Disputed Generally considered to be a workshop copy of a drawing. According to Kemp, it may have been begun by Leonardo as a figure of John the Baptist. | |||||
| Mary Magdalene | 1515 | NaNdisp=br | data-sort-value="Switzerland, private collection" | Private collection, Switzerland | |
Described as a potential Leonardo by Carlo Pedretti. Previously attributed to Giampietrino, who painted a number of similar Magdalenes.[54] Pedretti's attribution is not accepted by other scholars, e.g. Carlo Bertelli (former director of the Pinacoteca di Brera in Milan), who said that the subject could be a Lucretia with the knife removed.[55] | |||||
"Attribution to Leonardo is unchallenged."
"Attribution to Leonardo has never been seriously questioned."
"Attribution to Leonardo is unchallenged."
"Attribution to Leonardo has never been contested."
"Unanimously recognized as the only surviving fragments by Leonardo for this room."
"Attribution to Leonardo is unanimous."
"Although the painting's condition is poor, it should be considered a very damaged original by Leonardo."
"Unanimously attributed to Leonardo, although there is little agreement on its date."
