Leonardo da Vinci | Page 5

of the angel is, however, magnificently painted, and by Leonardo; the panel, taken as a whole, is exceedingly beautiful and full of charm and tenderness.

THE LAST SUPPER
Between 1496 and 1498 Leonardo painted his _chef d'oeuvre_, the "Last Supper," (Plate IV.) for the end wall of the Refectory of the Dominican Convent of S. Maria delle Grazie at Milan. It was originally executed in tempera on a badly prepared stucco ground and began to deteriorate a very few years after its completion. As early as 1556 it was half ruined. In 1652 the monks cut away a part of the fresco including the feet of the Christ to make a doorway. In 1726 one Michelangelo Belotti, an obscure Milanese painter, received ￡300 for the worthless labour he bestowed on restoring it. He seems to have employed some astringent restorative which revived the colours temporarily, and then left them in deeper eclipse than before. In 1770 the fresco was again restored by Mazza. In 1796 Napoleon's cavalry, contrary to his express orders, turned the refectory into a stable, and pelted the heads of the figures with dirt. Subsequently the refectory was used to store hay, and at one time or another it has been flooded. In 1820 the fresco was again restored, and in 1854 this restoration was effaced. In October 1908 Professor Cavenaghi completed the delicate task of again restoring it, and has, in the opinion of experts, now preserved it from further injury. In addition, the devices of Ludovico and his Duchess and a considerable amount of floral decoration by Leonardo himself have been brought to light.
Leonardo has succeeded in producing the effect of the _coup de théatre_ at the moment when Jesus said "One of you shall betray me." Instantly the various apostles realise that there is a traitor among their number, and show by their different gestures their different passions, and reveal their different temperaments. On the left of Christ is St. John who is overcome with grief and is interrogated by the impetuous Peter, near whom is seated Judas Iscariot who, while affecting the calm of innocence, is quite unable to conceal his inner feelings; he instinctively clasps the money-bag and in so doing upsets the salt-cellar.
It will be remembered that the Prior of the Convent complained to Ludovico Sforza, Duke of Milan, that Leonardo was taking too long to paint the fresco and was causing the Convent considerable inconvenience. Leonardo had his revenge by threatening to paint the features of the impatient Prior into the face of Judas Iscariot. The incident has been quaintly told in the following lines:--
"Padre Bandelli, then, complains of me Because, forsooth, I have not drawn a line Upon the Saviour's head; perhaps, then, he Could without trouble paint that head divine. But think, oh Signor Duca, what should be The pure perfection of Our Saviour's face-- What sorrowing majesty, what noble grace, At that dread moment when He brake the bread, And those submissive words of pathos said:
"'By one among you I shall be betrayed,'-- And say if 'tis an easy task to find Even among the best that walk this Earth, The fitting type of that divinest worth, That has its image solely in the mind. Vainly my pencil struggles to express The sorrowing grandeur of such holiness. In patient thought, in ever-seeking prayer, I strive to shape that glorious face within, But the soul's mirror, dulled and dimmed by sin, Reflects not yet the perfect image there. Can the hand do before the soul has wrought; Is not our art the servant of our thought?
"And Judas too, the basest face I see, Will not contain his utter infamy; Among the dregs and offal of mankind Vainly I seek an utter wretch to find. He who for thirty silver coins could sell His Lord, must be the Devil's miracle. Padre Bandelli thinks it easy is To find the type of him who with a kiss Betrayed his Lord. Well, what I can I'll do; And if it please his reverence and you, For Judas' face I'm willing to paint his."
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"... I dare not paint Till all is ordered and matured within, Hand-work and head-work have an earthly taint, But when the soul commands I shall begin; On themes like these I should not dare to dwell With our good Prior--they to him would be Mere nonsense; he must touch and taste and see, And facts, he says, are never mystical."
[Illustration: PLATE VI.--THE HEAD OF CHRIST
In the Brera Gallery, Milan. No. 280. 1 ft. 0-1/2 ins. by 1 ft. 4 ins. (0.32 x 0.40)]
The copy of the "Last Supper" (Plate V.) by Marco d'Oggiono, now in the Diploma Gallery at Burlington House, was made shortly after the original painting was completed. It gives but a faint echo