LEONARDO da Vinci
(b. 1452, Vinci, d. 1519, Cloux, near Amboise)

Study of nursing Madonna and profile heads

c. 1480
Pen and ink on paper, 405 x 290 mm
Royal Library, Windsor

In addition to a large number of profile heads, the sketch also shows the composition of a Maria lactans. Mary is kneeling on the ground, holding the Christ Child to her right breast, while the young St John appears to be watching the events. He reappears years later in Leonardo's Burlington House Cartoon.




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