Leonardo da Vinci, artist, thinker and man of science; . This wemay easily see from the way in whichhe treated iconography, allegory, andkindred subjects. No artist has everpushed independence farther than DaVinci ; we may even say that he pushed it too far, for in matters like these it is absolutely necessary that a painter should be in sympathy with his public, a result only to be arrived at either by deferring to tradition, or by extraordinary proselytising efforts on his own part. But Leonardo followed neither course, and many of his conceptions would be quite incomprehensible without the


Leonardo da Vinci, artist, thinker and man of science; . This wemay easily see from the way in whichhe treated iconography, allegory, andkindred subjects. No artist has everpushed independence farther than DaVinci ; we may even say that he pushed it too far, for in matters like these it is absolutely necessary that a painter should be in sympathy with his public, a result only to be arrived at either by deferring to tradition, or by extraordinary proselytising efforts on his own part. But Leonardo followed neither course, and many of his conceptions would be quite incomprehensible without the help of the explanations he has left us. Rejecting all but a few of the traditional attributes (a column for Courage, three eyes for Prudence, and so on), he undertook to create a complete symbolism for himself. He proposed to represent Fame in the shape of a bird covered with tongues instead of feathers, to place in the hand of Ingratitude a burning brand, suggesting^ Richter, vol. i., pp. 306, 354 ; Ch. Ravaisson-Mollien, MS. G., fol. 6. VOL. II. C. NUDE STUDIES FOR FIGURES IN THE ADORATION OF THE MAGI. (Valton Collection.) lo LEONARDO DA VINCI the wood which nourishes a fire, but is itself consumed ; or again,to symbolise Ingratitude by a pair of bellows consumed byfîames.^ One of the drawings at Christ Church, Oxford, shows a woman astride of a skeleton on all fours ; she has pendulous breasts, one hand raised in the air, the other supporting a vase. We should have found this an enigma very difficult to solve had the master not provided it with a long explanation. Here he meant to figure Envy. Envy, he explains, is represented making a contemptuous gesture towards heaven with one hand, because, if she could, she would direct her strength against the Deity ; her face is a benevolent mask ; her eyes are wounded by palm and olive branches, her ears by the myrtle and the laurel, which means that victory and truth oftend her. Lightnings flash from her body, typifying her calumn


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