The Republic of Florence, which came into being in 1494, decided to create an assembly hall for their most important political committee, the "High Council", which was suited to the requirements and pretensions of the new republic. The majority of the construction work on the Sala del Gran Consiglio in the Florentine Palazzo Vecchio had been completed shortly before 1500. The pictorial program was to include two large wall paintings intended to express the self confidence of the new republic. It was planned that two important victories from recent Florentine history should be depicted: the Battle of Anghiari and the Battle of Cascina. The choice of artist had to measure up to the importance of the commission, and the decision was made in favour of two of the most highly esteemed Florentine artists of the age, Leonardo da Vinci and the young Michelangelo.

Neither of the two artists completed his works and we only know of their projects indirectly by their being mentioned in documents, or in the form of copies or sketches that have been associated with the project.

Suggested listening (streaming mp3, 12 minutes): Heinrich Ignaz Franz von Biber: The Battle, suite

Preview	Picture Data	File Info	Comment
	The Battle of Anghiari (detail) 1503-05 Black chalk, pen and ink, watercolour on paper, 452 x 637 mm Musée du Louvre, Paris	1030*708 True Color 156 Kb
	The Battle of Anghiari (detail) 1503-05 Oil on canvas Galleria degli Uffizi, Florence	857*605 True Color 68 Kb
	The Battle of Anghiari (copy of a detail) 1503-05 Drawing Galleria degli Uffizi, Florence	1061*703 True Color 143 Kb
	Battle of Anghiari (Tavola Doria) 1503-05 Oil on panel, 85 x 115 cm Formerly private collection, Munich (lost)	1091*775 True Color 132 Kb
	Group of riders in the Battle of Anghiari 1503-04 Black chalk, white highlights, 160 x 197 mm Royal Library, Windsor	1030*821 True Color 89 Kb
	Study of battles on horseback and on foot 1503-04 Pen and ink on paper, 160 x 152 mm Gallerie dell'Accademia, Venice	858*898 True Color 105 Kb
	Study of battles on horseback and on foot 1503-04 Pen and ink on paper, 145 x 152 mm Gallerie dell'Accademia, Venice	903*839 True Color 100 Kb
	Study of battles on horseback 1503-04 Pen and ink on paper Galleria degli Uffizi, Florence	704*1024 True Color 113 Kb
	Study of horses for the Battle of Anghiari 1503-04 Traces of black and red chalk, pen and ink, wash on paper, 196 x 308 mm Royal Library, Windsor	1106*703 True Color 95 Kb
	Rearing horse 1503-04 Red chalk and pencil, 153 x 142 mm Royal Library, Windsor	802*881 True Color 50 Kb
	Head studies 1504-05 Metalpoint, black and red chalk on paper, 191 x 188 mm Szépmûvészeti Múzeum, Budapest	896*936 True Color 120 Kb
	Head of a Warrior ('The Red Head') 1504-05 Red chalk on brownish paper, 226 x 186 mm Szépmûvészeti Múzeum, Budapest	706*850 True Color 99 Kb