Portrait of a Musician

Leonardo da Vinci's 'Portrait of a Musician' (c. 1483–1485) is one of the very few male portraits from his hand. The youthful sitter, shown in three-quarter profile against a dark ground, holds a sheet of musical notation in his right hand; the anatomical precision of the jaw, lips, and ear is matched by unfinished passages in the robe and hand. Many specialists now identify the musician as Franchino Gaffurio, the Sforza court's maestro di cappella in Milan during Leonardo's first period there. It is the only painting universally accepted as an autograph Leonardo in Italian collections north of the Uffizi and is a centrepiece of the Biblioteca Ambrosiana in Milan.

Exhibition Venue

Pinacoteca Ambrosiana

Milan, Italy