The Codex Atlanticus
During the International Conference "Leonardo The Immortal Light" in Ancona, it was revealed that Leonardo da Vinci had encountered Federico da Montefeltro and created a sanguine sketch of him in profile.
The conference, organized under the auspices of the Marche Region as part of the 600th anniversary celebrations of the Duke of Urbino's birth, featured the participation of renowned art critic Annalisa Di Maria, international Leonardo expert Stefano Fortunati specializing in forensic calligraphy, researcher and sculptor Andrea da Montefeltro, and ophthalmologist Fabio Di Censo.
Double Portrait of the Dukes of Urbino by Piero della Francesca (c. 1465-1472), Uffizi Gallery.
Despite the age gap of 30 years between Federico da Montefeltro (1422-1482) and Leonardo (1452-1519), Di Maria believes they must have crossed paths in Florence from 1469 onwards. Both frequented the same intellectual circles, including the Medici court, and shared connections to the bookstore-printshop of Vespasiano Bisticci. Leonardo often passed by this establishment on his way to his master Verrocchio's workshop and the Neoplatonic Academy founded by Marsilio Ficino in 1462 at the behest of Cosimo il Vecchio. In one of Leonardo's drawings found in the Codex Atlanticus (a collection of 1,119 folios stored in 12 volumes at the Biblioteca Ambrosiana in Milan), specifically on folio 180 recto, there is an image believed to depict Federico da Montefeltro.
Portrait in Armor of Duke Federico da Montefeltro.
Piero della Francesca, Brera altarpiece, with Federico da Montefeltro kneeling at right.
Due to a tournament injury in 1451 that resulted in the loss of his right eye and a cavity in his nose, the duke preferred to be portrayed only from his left side, emulating the approach taken by Piero Della Francesca. However, cunningly, Federico made his aquiline nose a distinctive symbol of his domain, incorporating it into his coat of arms featuring an eagle's beak. Leonardo, either unwilling to indulge the duke's preference or not counted among the artists commissioned by Federico, portrayed him from the left side with a closed eye and a less pronounced nose.
Forensic analysis suggests that Leonardo might have met Federico during one of his unrecorded journeys to Montefeltro and later sketched his profile on a sheet of paper that already contained other notes.
Pedro Berruguete, Federico di Montefeltro with his son Guidobaldo.
Selena Mattei
