Leonardo's famed Vitruvian Man may have been copied

The iconic Leonardo da Vinci drawing of a man inscribed in a circle and square may have been the result of a collaboration with another artist --- and Leonardo’s sketch a copy of the friend’s.

The famous drawing of the man inscribed in a circle and square is known as the “Vitruvian man,” illustrates an ancient belief in the connection between the human form and the universe and is one of the most famous – and beloved – images in the world. The image is virtually synonymous with the name of Leonardo da Vinci, but new research suggests that it may be a copy of an earlier drawing by Leonardo’s friend, Giacomo Andrea de Ferrara, a Renaissance architect.

Turns out that there is another, older copy of the illustration that had been long forgotten but discovered in Ferrara, Italy in 1986 by Claudio Sgarbi, an architectural scholar. After decades of study, Sgarbi suggests that Giacomo Andrea drew his sketch first, though the two friends were not competing with one another, but rather, exchanged ideas and intellectual passions which led to the renderings.

The drawings reference an idea first discussed by Roman architect Vitruvius (hence the name Vitruvian man) who lived in the first century BC, and who first described as symbolically significant the fact that a man's body fits perfectly both inside a circle (symbol of divine perfection and eternity) and a square (symbol of the earth – the four corners, the four winds, etc.). The “perfect fit” inside a circle and square suggested to ancient philosophers that man is a "microcosm": a miniature embodiment of the whole universe. During the Renaissance, this notion was revived as texts from antiquity were made accessible through translations.

Leonardo’s writings in fact mention "Giacomo Andrea's Vitruvius,” suggesting the master was familiar with his friend’s work. It is also known that Leonardo had dinner with Giacomo in July 1490, the year in which both men are thought to have drawn their Vitruvian men. Doubtless the two would have discussed Vitruvius and his ideas. Though both drawings execute Vitruvius’ idea similarly (suggesting a dialogue which informed their similarity), Leonardo’s is executed perfectly, without any corrections and erasures, while Giacomo Andrea's is full of false starts and revisions, none of which would have been necessary if he had simply copied Leonardo's depiction.

Of course, some might argue that this is simply testament to Leonardo da Vinci’s famed genius. Scholars, however, tend to agree with Sgarbi. "I find Sgarbi's argument exciting and very seductive, to say the least," said Indra McEwen, an architectural historian at Concordia University who is a Vitruvius expert. He adds, however, that the two men were working in tandem, rather than “copying” from each other. Rather than competing, the two artists were working together to bring an ancient idea back to life.

"Whose was the 'original' drawing is a non-question as far as I'm concerned. Much as it is a preoccupation of our own time, I don't think it would have been an issue in Leonardo's day," McEwen said.

Source

Image Source: Wikimedia Commons

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