Why we are including this example

This page shows an example of using tabs as a way to deliver content to students. The tabs sequence the content and provides a way for students to interact with the content on the page.

Read and Watch

Introduction

Below are the reading and video assignments for the module. Complete the assignments in each tab before moving on to the next tab.

Reading Assignments

Read Textbook

Read Textbook

In your textbook, read pages 443-469

Watch video on Leonardo da Vinci

The Genius of Leonardo da Vinci (8:34)

Leonardo is known as a “Renaissance Man” because he was skilled in a variety of different branches of knowledge: painting, sculpture, engineering, military science, botany, anatomy, geology, geography, hydraulics, aerodynamics, optics, music, history, cartography.

Watch this video to learn more about Leonardo’s extraordinary mind and curiosity.

Read Mona Lisa

Mona Lisa

Leonardo da Vinci, Mona Lisa — Leonardo da Vinci, *Mona Lisa*, c. 1503-1506. Oil on poplar panel, 30.3” x 20.8”. Paris, Louvre Museum.

The Mona Lisa is a remarkably innovative female portrait on many levels, including the 3/4 pose, the direct gaze at the viewer, the enigmatic smile, and Leonardo’s use of sfumato to soften the forms. But with Leonardo, his subject matter is never presented in a traditional, straightforward way, and this portrait is no exception. There is one aspect of the painting whose significance is often overlooked: the landscape. Why would Leonardo juxtapose the figure of Lisa del Giocondo against such a fantastical landscape filled with craggy mountains, barren paths, and winding rivers? The answer may lie in his own writings. In one of his manuscripts, Leonardo describes correspondences between the body of the earth and the human body:

“Man has been called by the ancients a lesser world, and indeed the term is rightly applied, seeing that if man is compounded of earth, water, air and fire, this body of the earth is the same; and as man has within himself bones as a stay and framework of the flesh, so the world has rocks which are the supports of the earth; as man has within him a pool of blood wherein the lungs as he breathes expand and contract, so the body of the earth has its ocean, which also rises and falls every six hours with the breathing of the world [the tides].”

The Mona Lisa, therefore, can be read as an exploration of the human body as a microcosm of the entire earth and universe.

Although the Mona Lisa could benefit from a good cleaning, the Louvre will never authorize such an undertaking. The thin layers of oil glaze on the painting make it so fragile that it would be extremely difficult to clean, and conservation efforts could quickly go wrong. You will learn in the next module about the controversy surrounding the cleaning of Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel ceiling.

Circle of Leonardo, Mona Lisa, between 1503 and 1516. Oil on panel, 30” x 22.4”. Madrid, Museo del Prado. — Circle of Leonardo, *Mona Lisa,* between 1503 and 1516. Oil on panel, 30” x 22.4”. Madrid, Museo del Prado.

This copy of the Mona Lisa (in the Prado Museum), which was likely produced by someone in Leonardo’s circle, gives us a sense of what Leonardo’s portrait might have looked like before years of dirt and grime have turned her into a “submarine goddess.” (as per Professor Martin Kemp)

Read The Last Supper

The Last Supper

As you read in the textbook, Leonardo grouped the apostles in four groups of three to convey deeper meaning in his Last Supper beyond merely a depiction of the Last Supper.

Leonardo da Vinci, Last Supper, 1495-1498. Tempera on gesso, pitch and mastic. 15’ x 28.8’. Milan, Church of Santa Maria delle Grazie. — Leonardo da Vinci, *Last Supper,* 1495-1498. Tempera on gesso, pitch and mastic. 15’ x 28.8’. Milan, Church of Santa Maria delle Grazie.

3 = the trinity; days between Christ’s death and resurrection; theological Virtues of faith, hope, and charity.

4 = four gospels that tell of Jesus’s life and ministry; corners of the earth; seasons of the year; compass points (north, south, east, west); elements (earth, air, fire, water); Cardinal Virtues of Justice, Temperance, Prudence, and Fortitude; times of the day (dawn, day, dusk, night).

3+4=7 and 7 is a number of perfection; days in a week; number of Joys and Sorrows of Mary

3x4=12 and 12 is the number of apostles; tribes of Israel; months of the year; hours in a day.

Although it doesn’t really matter who the apostles are in three of the groups, it matters a great deal who the figures are seated to the left of Jesus (his right) because they each play a significant role in the overall life and mission of Jesus.

Detail of The Last Supper — Detail of *The Last Supper*

Judas is depicted as a dark figure. He betrays Christ and sets in motion the events leading up to the crucifixion.

Peter is depicted as elderly, bearded apostle. He leads the Church after Christ’s crucifixion. In Catholic tradition, he is the first pope.

John is depicted as a youthful, beautiful apostle. He writes in the Book of John about the divine nature of Jesus, and he also writes the Book of Revelation that references the second coming.

Grouping these three significant figures together next to Jesus implies that Leonardo is wanting viewers to reflect on the entire ministry of Jesus Christ, not just this isolated event.

Read Leonardo Trattato

Leonardo Trattato

Read Leonardo Trattato.

Discussion about Leonardo's Trattato

Discussion about Leonardo's Trattato

Participate in the discussion for this week's module.

Watch Nova: Mystery of a Masterpiece

Nova: Mystery of a Masterpiece

Watch the following video: