Visual Magic

Chapter 5 reviews the visual evidence on the basis of the stripped picture before the infilling of lost areas of paint. Pentimenti are apparent, most conspicuously in the repositioning of the thumb of the blessing hand. Infrared reflectography reveals detailed changes in the drapery and a few spolveri which indicate the use of a cartoon and shows the use of Leonardo’s hand-print method to soften the modelling of flesh. The vortex curls and the understated anatomy of the hands are typical of Leonardo’s post-1500 style, as is the insistent blurring of the contours of the face. The interlace pattern of the textile bands is founded on an angular geometry of the Islamic kind and reflects Leonardo’s visit to Venice in 1500. The transparent orb is of rock crystal and is marked by gaps or ‘inclusions’, exhibiting optical effects of the kinds that fascinated him, not least the translucency of semi-precious minerals. The crystal orb refers in an innovative way to the crystalline sphere of the fixed stars, thus transforming Christ from the saviour of the world to the saviour of the cosmos. The other optical effect in the painting involves his notions of the working of the eye, with the hands shown more definitely than Christ’s face, akin to a ‘depth of field’ effect in photography. The optical softening of features also acts to render his emotional impact as suggestive and ineffable rather than overtly defined.