The Virgin of the Rocks
Leonardo da Vinci (1452 to 1519) · about 1491 to 1508
The Virgin Mary kneels in a dim grotto, one arm around the infant John the Baptist, her other hand hovering above the Christ child, who raises two fingers in blessing. An angel kneels behind him, looking out of the picture. Above and behind them rise strange pillars of rock, and through the gaps you glimpse a misty river valley. The subject is a legend rather than a Bible story: the two holy children meeting in the wilderness during the flight into Egypt.
Leonardo painted two versions of this composition. The first, now in the Louvre, was begun in 1483 for a confraternity chapel in Milan. This London picture is the second, made after a long legal dispute over payment, and it is the one that was finally installed in the chapel. It is cooler and more finished in feeling, with clearer light and the haloes and the Baptist's reed cross added by another hand. Look at the soft transitions from light to shadow on the faces, the technique called sfumato that Leonardo perfected, and at the botanically exact plants and the geology of the rocks, which he studied like a scientist.
The National Gallery bought the painting in 1880. Recent technical imaging beneath the surface has revealed an abandoned first design with the figures in different positions, showing Leonardo changing his mind as he worked. Stand back and let your eye follow the triangle of gestures between the four figures; it is one of the quietest and most complete compositions of the Renaissance.
Did You Know? Under the paint, infrared and X-ray imaging found the ghost of an earlier Virgin, positioned higher and looking in a different direction.
Unlock the Full Guide
Read every room and listen to every work in all museums with premium.