Testa di Leda by Leonardo da Vinci

All the grace of the feminine depicted by Leonardo Da Vinci in this red pencil drawing, preserved at the Sforzesco Castle. The portrait was a preparatory study for Leonardo’s painting Leda and the Swan, which was unfortunately lost at the end of the 17th century.

The gentleness of the woman’s features and the enigmatic expression of her smile, typically Leonardo-esque, go hand in hand with the extreme care with which certain details, such as the hair styled in numerous small braids, are drawn.

The tenderness of her gaze can be explained by observing a variant of the original painting by one of Leonardo’s pupils, preserved in the Uffizi in Florence, in which the woman looks at her little children just born from her encounter with Jupiter in the guise of a swan, namely the Dioscuri, Castor and Pollux, and the sisters Helen and Clytemnestra.

Today, after its last restoration in 2013, we can admire the full beauty of this little jewel by Leonardo at the Sforza Castle in Milan, a work that enriches the vast panorama of Milan’s art.

We look forward to welcoming you to the Best Western Hotel City, just steps from the city’s main tourist attractions.