UNFINISHED BUSINESS

A master procrastinator, here are five of da Vinci’s works that he never got round to completing

The Virgin and The Child with Saint Anne

Da Vinci had spent almost 20 years working on this painting when he died, leaving it incomplete. It depicts the Virgin Mary sitting on the lap of her mother, Saint Anne, while holding a young Jesus, all painted in the famous sfumato technique. Why the painting was left unfinished has led to much speculation but it is most likely because da Vinci’s attention was diverted elsewhere.

COLOSSUS

One of Leonardo’s greatest disappointments was his unrealized vision, Colossus, a seven-metre bronze equestrian statue. Commissioned by the duke of Milan, the statue provided da Vinco with the artistic challenge that he craved. He completed the clay model in 1493, ready for it to be cast in bronze. However, his work was dashed when the French invaded Milan in 1494 and the duke gave away the 70 tons of bronze set aside for the statue to be melted and turned into cannons to defend the city.

ST JEROME IN THE WILDERNESS

Created circa 1480, this painting is largely regarded as one of Leonardo’s masterpieces, despite its unfinished state. A depiction of Saint Jerome’s retreat the Syrian Desert, the detail of the sain’t neck muscles is considered to be one of Leonardo’s first anatomical drawings. To this day, the circumstances surrounding its creation and subsequent abandonment remain a mystery.

THE BATTLE OF ANGHIARI

Leonardo’s masterpiece has been missing for centuries and is known as ‘the lost Leonardo’. Only copies of da Vinci’s masterpiece, including one by Rubens, still exist, although it is believed that it has been hidden in the hall that da Vinci painted it in. However, it is known that the artist failed to finish the painting. He had experimented with a new painting technique, which produced stunning results, but also meant that the painting could not withstand the elements.

THE ADORATION OF THE MAGI

This painting was commissioned by the Augustinian monks for the monastery of San Donato a Scopeto, near Florence, in 1481. It has been speculated that one of the figures in the far right-hand-side corner, facing away from the others, is actually a self-portrait of da Vinci. The painting was left incomplete when da Vinci left Florence for Milan in 1482.

Da Vinci’s St Jerome brought together his artistic skills with his knowledge of anatomy

The painting is best remembered by Peter Paul Rubens’ copy as the original is lost

The Adoration of the Magi is considered to be one of da Vinci’s masterpieces

The three figures have a triangular composition, showing da Vinci’s geometry skills

The Sforza monument was finally created in Milan in 1999, 480 years after da Vinci’s death