St. John the Baptist (Leonardo)

St. John the Baptist

Artist	Leonardo da Vinci
Year	1513-1516
Type	Oil on walnut wood
Dimensions	69 cm × 57 cm (27.2 in × 22.4 in)
Location	Louvre, Paris

St. John the Baptist is an oil painting on walnut wood by Leonardo da Vinci. Completed from 1513 to 1516, when the High Renaissance was metamorphosing into Mannerism, it is believed to be his last painting. The original size of the work was 69x57 cm. It is now exhibited at the Musée du Louvre in Paris, France.

The piece depicts St. John the Baptist in isolation. St. John is dressed in pelts, has long curly hair, and is smiling in an enigmatic manner which is reminiscent of Leonardo's famous Mona Lisa. He holds a reed cross in his left hand while his right hand points up toward heaven (like St Anne in Leonardo's cartoon The Virgin and Child with St Anne and St John the Baptist). It is believed that the cross and wool skins were added at a later date by another painter.

The pointing gesture of St. John toward the heavens suggests the importance of salvation through baptism that John the Baptist represents. The work is often quoted by later painters, especially those in the late Renaissance and Mannerist schools. The inclusion of a gesture similar to John's would increase the importance of a work with a religious conceit.

The effeminate, androgynous portrayal of St. John where he is usually seen as a gaunt and muscular figure is unusual. A suggested reason for the darkened background is in reference to the description of St.John in the Bible as 'a light that shineth in the darkness'.

External Links

• Interactive online application by the C2RMF for the exhibition Leonardo da Vinci's Saint John the Baptist in Milan, organized by the Louvre Museum, Milan City Council and sponsored by Eni, featuring zoomable high resolution scientific imagery (color, IR, X-ray, UV etc) and commentary on the painting.

• Lairweb.org.nz John the Baptist
• www.mos.org/leonardo da vinci