This week, curators at an exhibition in Florence discovered that the sculptures they held were actually the only survivor of its kind, performed by the artist Leonardo Da Vinci.
Although historically it has been said that Leonardo has made some sculptures (including a giant horse), he has never found a three-dimensional work on his part.
Fortunately, it seems that the "Virgin with the Smiling Baby" is a wonderful exception. It is thought that the work could be created around 1472, when Leonardo was 19 to 20 years old and a student of Andrea del Verrocchio. Since 1858, "The Blessed Virgin and Baby" is located in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, where it was thought to belong to Antonio Rossellino.
Francesco Caglioti, an Italian academician at the University of Naples, renowned among Renaissance experts for extensive knowledge of 15th century sculpture, is convinced that sculpture is the work of Da Vinci. As the virgin sees the baby, the laugh she carries is the portico of all the enigmatic smiles in Leonardo's art (remember Mona Lisa).
Likewise, the icon of the infant Christ is another point that adds to the doubt that most likely the sculturus is the Da Vinci genius. If you take a look, you will notice that Christendom looks so alive, something that characterizes Leonard's creativity on portraying children.
As for the laughter of Christ's portrayal, something like this in the 15th century is considered entirely blasphemous. Meanwhile, based on notes in his notebooks, Da Vinci recalls how at an early age he came into trouble precisely because he had portrayed the infant Christ.
Could it have been this sculpture that put the genius in trouble?
