Battle of Anghiari
by Leonardo da Vinci
⌠Lost / Destroyed — only copies remain
Battle of Anghiari (Rubens copy after Leonardo) - Musee du Louvre, Paris
The Competition With Michelangelo
Commissioned by Gonfaloniere Pier Soderini (contract signed by Niccolò Machiavelli), Leonardo was assigned the east wall while Michelangelo took the opposite wall for the Battle of Cascina — the only time these titans worked on the same project. Neither finished. The depicted battle (June 29, 1440) saw Florence defeat Milanese forces. The central composition shows four horsemen violently grappling for a battle standard — conveying extraordinary fury, twisted expressions, and gnashing horse teeth. Peter Paul Rubens' celebrated copy (Louvre) is the finest surviving record.
The Search Behind Vasari'S Wall
When Giorgio Vasari renovated the hall (1555–1572), Leonardo's remnants vanished beneath new frescoes. Vasari painted a tiny green flag bearing the words "CERCA TROVA" ("Seek and You Shall Find") 12 meters above ground in his Battle of Marciano. Maurizio Seracini's decades-long investigation discovered a curtain wall with a 1–3 cm gap behind Vasari's fresco. In 2011–2012, endoscopic probes retrieved black pigment samples matching those used by Leonardo in the Mona Lisa and Saint John the Baptist. However, over 100 art historians signed a petition opposing the investigation, and a 2019 anthology by Barsanti, Belli, Ferretti, and Frosinini argued Leonardo never actually painted the mural. Seracini was ordered to stop investigations. The question remains unresolved.
Research & Analysis
Commissioned by Gonfaloniere Pier Soderini (contract signed by Niccolò Machiavelli), Leonardo was assigned the east wall while Michelangelo took the opposite wall for the Battle of Cascina — the only time these titans worked on the same project. Neither finished. The depicted battle (June 29, 1440) saw Florence defeat Milanese forces. The central composition shows four horsemen violently grappling for a battle standard — conveying extraordinary fury, twisted expressions, and gnashing horse teeth. Peter Paul Rubens' celebrated copy (Louvre) is the finest surviving record.
When Giorgio Vasari renovated the hall (1555–1572), Leonardo's remnants vanished beneath new frescoes. Vasari painted a tiny green flag bearing the words "CERCA TROVA" ("Seek and You Shall Find") 12 meters above ground in his Battle of Marciano. Maurizio Seracini's decades-long investigation discovered a curtain wall with a 1–3 cm gap behind Vasari's fresco. In 2011–2012, endoscopic probes retrieved black pigment samples matching those used by Leonardo in the Mona Lisa and Saint John the Baptist. However, over 100 art historians signed a petition opposing the investigation, and a 2019 anthology by Barsanti, Belli, Ferretti, and Frosinini argued Leonardo never actually painted the mural. Seracini was ordered to stop investigations. The question remains unresolved.