Tap to explore
Works or Studies
Many of the artworks realised by Leonardo in Milan are showcased by the greatest museum in the world, but some of his masterpieces or exhibitions about his studies can still be found around the city.
Tap to explore
Tap to explore
As as ducal engineer, Leonardo was also asked to design impressive stage machines, such as those conceived for the Festa del Paradiso (Feast of Paradise) organised in 1490.
Between 1497 and 1498 he painted the Sala delle Asse, one of the ducal apartments’ rooms at ground level in the Ducal Court.
After serving as fortress, barracks and prison, the Castle was restored between 1893 and 1905, becoming a site for some of the city’s key cultural institutions.
The Biblioteca Trivulziana (Trivulziana Library) preserves precious manuscripts such as the Codex Trivulzianus, ms. 2162 (the original is not on display but it’s possible to consult a facsimile copy in the library’s reading room), one of the first codes compiled by Leonardo, written between 1487 and 1490.
Tap to explore
Tap to explore
Between 1494 and 1498 he painted the Cenacolo (Last Supper), a work of great emotional impact.
Even though it is painted on a wall, the Last Supper is not a fresco. Leonardo chose not to adopt this technique because it would have forced him to work quickly. Instead he prepared the parget with a layer of plaster and glue, then painted over it with a mixed technique, using both tempera and oil colours. The final effect is that of incredible softness and luminosity.
Unfortunately in this experimental procedure the colour does not penetrate into the parget and tends to falls off because of dampness.
Through the centuries restorers repainted the details which were no longer visible, merging the hands of different artists.
The restoration completed in 1999 revealed the original colours and delicate light effects.
Tap to explore
Biblioteca and Pinacoteca Ambrosiana
The Library presents itself as one of the most important in the world. It is enriched by almost 1 million printed books, 36,000 manuscripts (among which the celebrated Codex Atlanticus), 12,000 drawings (amongst which are works of Raphael, Pisanello, Leonardo and more), 22,000 stand-alone engravings and other unique rarities (old maps, musical manuscripts, parchments and papyri). The Quadreria, or painting gallery, of the Pinacoteca holds more than 1,500 paintings. Among the best-known are: Leonardo’s Portrait of a Musician, the Basket of Fruit by Caravaggio, Giovanni Ambrogio De Predis’s Portrait of a Lady, the Madonna of the Pavilion by Botticelli, the Nativity by Barocci, Titian’s Adoration of the Magi, the Holy Family by Bernardino Luini, Fire and Water by Bruegel. In addition we mention the Codex Atlanticus of Leonardo da Vinci, holding over 1750 various illustrations, the great Raphael cartoon of the School of Athens and the Galleria Resta, or portable gallery, a volume of grand format (248 drawings by various masters led by Raphael).
Tap to explore
Museo Nazionale della Scienza e della Tecnologia Leonardo da Vinci
Inaugurated in 1953, it is today the largest technical-scientific museum in Italy. It is located in the former Olivetan Monastery of San Vittore, whose Renaissance cloisters were built starting in 1508 on the remains of a Benedictine building and on an important cemetery area of the late ancient city.
Tap to explore
The Gallery dedicated to Leonardo exhibits part of the most important collection of models built starting from the interpretation of his drawings. It is thus possible to complete an interesting journey through the many fields of study of the master, from flight to military engineering and machine tools. The models made from hydraulic engineering drawings in which Leonardo studies the canals of Milan are linked to his stay in Milan.
Tap to explore
Tap to explore
It represents a free interpretation of the never produced equestrian monument dedicated to Francesco Sforza, commissioned to Leonardo in 1484 by Ludovico il Moro.
After 1490, following many studies on the horse anatomy and casting techniques, Leonardo made a full size clay model in Corte Vecchia, ready for the casting. Unfortunately the bronze necessary to this will never arrive and the model will be destroyed by the French soldiers at the beginning of XVI century.
Tap to explore
Waterways
While in Milano, Leonardo observed Naviglio Grande and Naviglio Martesana. He paid special attention to the locks built in order to cross differences of level and studied how to implement them.
Tap to explore
Tap to explore
The pool was filled and emptied through secondary doors, described for the first time by Leonardo around 1506.
The place is also known as Gabelle Lock, after the near bridge where salt used to be taxed (gabelle is an old Italian word for taxes). Between 1929 and 1961 the urban stretch of the Martesana Canal was covered all the way up to the Cassina de’ Pomm.
Tap to explore
Viarenna Lock
In order to reach the inner canal ring passing the 3 metre drop, in 1439 the engineers Filippo degli Organi and Aristotele Fioravanti da Bologna built the first lock in Milano. The lock was even described by Leonardo. It was also known as “Our Lady of the Fabbrica” lock since it was principally used for transporting the blocks or marble for the Duomo. When the new city walls were built in the 16th century, the lock was moved further north. Today the lock chamber is the only part still visible, witnessing its original function. An aedicule and a plaque recall the concession for its free use granted in 1497 by Ludovico il Moro to the Fabbrica del Duomo.
Tap to explore
Pavese Canal
Leonardo did not study the Pavese Canal because its construction only began in 1564. It connected directly Milano and Pavia. The initial developer was Giuseppe Meda, a painter, architect and hydraulic engineer. After twenty years the work was hampered by technical problems linked to the level of second lock, which was thus called Fallata, flawed. The canal was completed only in 1819. In order to travel along the 34 km separating Milan from Pavia, it was necessary to pass through 14 locks.
The two 16th century locks have now been restored: the doors of the Conchetta (Small Lock) were reproduced as depicted in Leonardo’s drawings, around 1506.
Tap to explore
The Grand Canal
The canal was built and extended between the middle of the 12th and the middle of the13th century to connect the Ticino river to Milano. A masterpiece of medieval hydraulic engineering, the Naviglio Grande is 50 km long and flows continuously with an inclination of only 34 metres. The barges travelled from Lake Maggiore along the canal downstream helped by the current. The sand and stone with which they were filled were employed in the building of a large portion of the city. The barges went upstream drawn from the banks, called “alzaie”. Leonardo was extremely interested in this canal. He drew it more than once, underlining its economical out-turn in terms of ways of transport and irrigation systems.
Tap to explore
The Martesana Canal
In 1457 Francesco Sforza ordered the construction of this canal, which brought water from the river Adda into the city. The 34 km long bed with an 18 metre inclination was built by Bertola da Novate in only 7 years. The canal was used to work mills and, from 1471, for navigation. Wood, wine and bricks were brought into the city from the countryside, while precious textiles, artefacts and salt were exported from the centre and taxed at the Gabelle bridge. In 1497 Ludovico il Moro had the Martesana connected to the inner canal ring. In order to deal with the existing drop, engineer Bartolomeo Della Valle built three locks: Cassina di Pomm, Incoronata and San Marco. Between 1929 and 1961 the urban stretch of the Martesana Canal was covered all the way along via San Marco and Melchiorre Gioia up to the Cassina di Pomm.
Tap to explore
Life of Leonardo
Leonardo arrived in Milano in 1482. The city was ruled by the Sforza family. He introduced himself to the court as war engineer, architect, sculptor, painter and even musician.
Tap to explore
Tap to explore
Ca' Granda
The construction of the “Spedale dei poveri” (Hospital for the Poor) or Ospedale Maggiore began in 1456 based on a project by Filarete and was continued by Guiniforte Solari and Giovanni Antonio Amadeo. Only the men’s sector was built as originally planned. The sick were hosted in the 90 metres long wings of the central cross which divided the space into four courtyards. Each patient had a bed, a wardrobe and a table. In the side corridors were toilet facilities with drains, a modern solution which Leonardo integrated in his city plans. Even if there is no solid evidence, it is likely that Leonardo used some corpses form the Ca’ Granda for his anatomical studies. The Ca’ Granda hosts today the Università degli Studi of Milan.
Tap to explore
Duomo
The building of the new cathedral, founded in 1386, was carried out by the Veneranda Fabbrica del Duomo, the institution established by duke Gian Galeazzo Visconti. Starting from the apse, the building yard incorporated the former cathedral of Santa Maria Maggiore. When the architect Guiniforte Solari died in 1481, works were interrupted because of technical problems connected to the building of the massive tiburio (dome crossing tower). After trying with a German master, the Fabbrica asked for technical estimations from different architects such as Bramante and Francesco di Giorgio Martini. Between 1487 and 1490 Leonardo also made some drawings and a wooden model of the dome cladding. Yet its actual building was finally entrusted to the Lombard architects Amadeo and Dolcebuono.
Tap to explore
Royal Palace
Piazza Duomo, the political and religious heart of the city, was very different when Leonardo first arrived in Milan. He set up his workshop in Palazzo Reale (Royal Palace), once known as Corte Vecchia (Old Court) as it was the former residence of the Visconti family before the Court moved to the Castello Sforzesco. Even today, behind the neoclassical appearance of the palace, it is possible to recognize some medieval details like the terracotta windows on the side along via Rastrelli. In his workshop Leonardo sculpted the clay model of the Sforza horse and experimented some elements of his flying machine. For this reason he wrote on a sheet of the Codex Atlanticus: “And if you stay on the roof near the tower, make sure that no one from the Cathedral can see you”
Tap to explore
Lazzaretto
The foundations were laid in 1488. Property of the Ospedale Maggiore (Main Hospital), the Lazzaretto was designed to host the plague victims in isolation, outside the city walls. It was located north-east of the city, near the San Gregorio cemetery. Its dimensions were impressive: a 400 metre wide square surrounded by a trench, known as the “health trough”.
The centre of the quadrangle was an open church where the ill could attend mass. The three porticoed sides hosted 288 rooms, each with two windows, a latrine and a pallet for sleeping.
A small portion of the original walls is still visible along via San Gregorio, hosting the Russian Ortodox Church.
Tap to explore
Santa Maria at San Satiro
The church was built between 1476 and 1482 under the will of Duke Galeazzo Maria Sforza. The elegant shapes and the use of classic architectural orders reveal the work of Giovanni Antonio Amadeo and Donato Bramante from Urbino - who arrived in Milano between 1478 and 1480. Bramante also designed the octagonal sacristy, decorated with terracotta ornaments by Agostino de Fondulis. The fake perspective choir which adorns the far end of the church was described by Ludovico il Moro as an astonishing artifice. The low-relief is one-metre thick, with gilded stucco frames creating an imaginary sense of depth. This solution visually enlarged the church, whose architectural structure was physically limited by a backstreet.
Tap to explore
Monument to Leonardo
The monument dedicated to Leonardo was created by the sculptor Pietro Magni in 1872 to decorate the new Piazza della Scala.
Leonardo is surrounded by four disciples: Cesare da Sesto, Marco d’Oggiono, Giovanni Antonio Boltraffio e Andrea Salaino. Four bas-reliefs tell the story of his activity in Milan.
Exhibit of
Museo Nazionale della Scienza e della Tecnologia
Leonardo da Vinci
Via San Vittore 21
Milano
www.museoscienza.org
