From 28th September until 23rd January 2022, the Prado Museum is holding the first exhibition dedicated to examining the copies and versions made at Leonardo da Vinci’s studio and permitted by him.

The exhibition is based on studies from La Sainte Anne, l’ultime chef-d’œuvre de Léonard de Vinci at the Louvre Museum in Paris (France) in 2012, as well as more recent analyses of the drawings, treatises and pictorial technique of the Italian author and his closest circle.

Among the greatest copies of Leonardo's work is the Mona Lisa at the Prado Museum, which plays an essential role in this exhibition. This is the earliest known version of La Gioconda and one of the most significant examples of the procedures followed at the Leonardo factory.

It is not known exactly how it arrived in Spain, although it was already listed in the Galería del Mediodía del Alcázar in 1666. It differs from the original in terms of the black background, the lower quality of the drawing and the absence of Da Vinci’s characteristic sfumato.

However, it is not a mere copy; the painting is very rich in details and is created from the inside out so we can assume that Leonardo created his Gioconda at the same time that this unknown author was developing his own piece. It is thought that the artist could be one of his closest students such as Salai or Francesco Melzi, although thus far it has been impossible to prove.

Image Credits:

• Mona Lisa. Leonardo da Vinci. Oil on panel, 76.3 x 57 cm. 1503 - 1519. Madrid, Prado National Museum
• Leda. Based on Leonardo da Vinci. Tempera on panel, 115 x 86 cm. 1510-20. Rome, Galleria Borghese
• The Adolescent Saviour. Attributed to Giovanni Antonio Boltraffio (1466/67-1516). Oil on panel, 25.3 x 18.5 cm. 1490- 95. Madrid, Lázaro Galdiano Museum
• Salvator Mundi (Ganay version). Leonardo da Vinci’s studio, authorised and supervised by him Oil on panel, 68.2 x 48.8 cm. 1505-15. Private Collection