From Apprentice to Master

Leonardo's earliest surviving paintings chart his extraordinary emergence from the workshop of Andrea del Verrocchio — Florence's leading artist and teacher. In just a few years, the pupil surpassed the master, introducing oil painting techniques, psychological depth, and atmospheric effects that had no precedent in Italian art.

The Baptism of Christ

c. 1468–1475 · 177 × 151 cm · Tempera and oil on poplar · Uffizi, Florence

The foundational work for understanding Leonardo's emergence. X-radiography reveals a dramatic technical divide: Verrocchio's lead-based tempera passages appear clearly under X-ray, while Leonardo's oil sections are nearly invisible due to non-lead pigments.

Leonardo's Contributions

  • The left-hand angel (the blond figure turning toward the scene)
  • The background landscape with atmospheric mountains
  • Water near Christ's feet
  • Significant portions of Christ's body

Vasari's famous account claims Verrocchio was so humiliated by his pupil's superior angel that he "never wanted to touch colors again." While likely apocryphal, Verrocchio's painting output did effectively cease after this work.

Hidden beneath the surface: Infrared reflectography revealed an entirely different original landscape — a symmetrical design with stratified rocks on both sides. Leonardo aggressively covered the left side, replacing it with his angel and atmospheric vista.
Leonardo's Hand
~45% · Collaborative workshop piece

The Annunciation

c. 1472–1476 · 98 × 217 cm · Oil and tempera on poplar · Uffizi, Florence

An unusually wide, panoramic format painting that arrived at the Uffizi attributed to Ghirlandaio. A preparatory drawing for the angel's sleeve (Christ Church, Oxford) definitively confirmed Leonardo's authorship. His innovation was radical: he placed the Annunciation outdoors (traditionally an interior scene) and gave the angel a physical shadow on the grass.

The extended arm: Mary's right arm appears disproportionately long when viewed head-on. This is intentional anamorphic distortion — the painting was designed for lateral viewing from the right and below, consistent with placement over a side altar. From this angle, proportions align perfectly.
Leonardo's Hand
~90% · Primarily Leonardo with possible Verrocchio design input

Benois Madonna

c. 1478–1480 · 49.5 × 33 cm · Oil (transferred to canvas) · Hermitage, Saint Petersburg

Considered likely Leonardo's first fully independent painting. Mary holds a bitter cress flower whose petals form a cross — symbol of the coming Crucifixion. One of his most joyous depictions of the Madonna.

Florence (Botti family, 16th c.) → General Korsakov (1790s) → Sapozhnikov (1,400 roubles, 1823) → Benois family (1880) → Hermitage (150,000 roubles, 1914)

Bernard Berenson famously disparaged it: "The hands are wretched, the folds purposeless and fussy, the color like whey. And yet I had to acknowledge that this painful affair was the work of Leonardo da Vinci."

Leonardo's Hand
~95% · Universally accepted

Madonna of the Carnation

c. 1475–1480 · 62 × 48.5 cm · Oil on poplar · Alte Pinakothek, Munich

The only Leonardo on permanent display in Germany. Originally attributed to Verrocchio, the shift to Leonardo was supported by the near-scientific rendering of carnations, atmospheric perspective in the mountain scenery, and compositional similarities to the Benois Madonna. Acquired in 1889 for just 800 marks.

A Flemish overpainting was identified by scholars, and an improper restoration gave the surface a characteristic "leathery" appearance, especially on the Madonna's face. Its deteriorated condition has meant it receives less scholarly attention than other Leonardo works.

Leonardo's Hand
~75% · Accepted with some workshop debate

Ginevra de' Benci

c. 1474–1478 · 38.1 × 37 cm · Oil on poplar · National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.

The only Leonardo painting on public view in the Americas. Leonardo's innovations were revolutionary: outdoor setting (women were typically shown indoors), three-quarter pose (replacing the prevailing profile format), oil paint for naturalistic effects, and the first "psychological portrait" in art history.

Florence (c. 1474) → Liechtenstein (by 1712) → Hidden in wine cellar, WWII → NGA ($5M, 1967)

Purchased for $5 million (then world record), transported from Zurich in a gray American Tourister suitcase under the name "Mrs. Modestini." Nearly 1,000 visitors arrived in the first hour.

The missing hands: The painting was cut down by approximately one-third from the bottom (likely 16th–17th century fire or water damage). A Windsor Castle silverpoint drawing of hands is believed to be the preparatory study for the missing section. The reverse features a juniper sprig with the motto "VIRTVTEM FORMA DECORAT" — beneath which infrared revealed an earlier motto: "Virtus et Honor."

Leonardo's fingerprints, preserved in the paint, were discovered during the 1991 cleaning.

Leonardo's Hand
~98% · Universally accepted, fingerprints confirmed