After unveiling what the true face of the Virgin Mary would look like (after the Shroud of Turin), the Brazilian designer and History and Archeology specialist, Átila Soares da Costa Filho, reveals a (new) surprising find. Also related to that relic, in addition to the greatest genius of history, this time, feat was nothing less than the famous LAST SUPPER. According to Átila, the mural executed by Leonardo in 1498 for the refectory of the church of Santa Maria delle Grazie (Milan) could also contain a hidden element that reaffirmed the closeness between the artist and the greatest treasure of Christianity of all times, the Holy Shroud - who would have wrapped the body of Jesus after death and recorded his figure when resurrected.
Could this significant compatibility among these outlines suggest the greatest secret behind Leonardo's most esoteric work?
In the top (1): "O Cristo morto", Brazilian Baroque - Museu de Arte Sacra, Belém; lower (2): The body wrapped in linen; lower (3): "Cristo Yacente"; (4): "The Burial"; above (5): the “Mystery Man” (2022), the hyper-realistic Shroud silicone body
(PICTURES: WikiCommons - Átila Soares / Antônio Sales / Juan Manuel Miñarro – ABC / Coria del Río - Arte Sacro / “Sabana Santa – México” / “The Mystery Man” exhibition) .
In the top (1): "O Cristo morto", Brazilian Baroque - Museu de Arte Sacra, Belém; lower (2): The body wrapped in linen; lower (3): "Cristo Yacente"; (4): "The Burial"; above (5): the “Mystery Man” (2022), the hyper-realistic Shroud silicone body
(PICTURES: WikiCommons - Átila Soares / Antônio Sales / Juan Manuel Miñarro – ABC / Coria del Río - Arte Sacro / “Sabana Santa – México” / “The Mystery Man” exhibition) .
This would be the indication of the body of dead Christ, designed by the 13 characters group at the table. The visual effect is more evident through a haze in this set that unites Jesus to the apostles, where we can notice a humanoid figure lying on the table – exactly in the same mold as the man stamped on the Shroud. There are many reasons for the researcher to defend this new vision of the “Supper”: According to him, to start with, there's already an identification of the face of the Shroud in this very painting, in the column on the left, above and between the heads of Saint Bartholomew and Saint James (the Less).
Although never documented, some connection between Leonardo and the Shroud has always been a theme for speculations. Above, the shocking finding of the "man of the Shroud”'s face, by Montera's friend (right behind what looks like to be the “Grail”, another discovery by the doctor). Hidden over one of the pillars from the “Last Supper”, this face could directly set the Tuscan genius as a witness to the most revered relic ever (IMAGES: WikiCommons / Átila Soares).
This reference might also serve to indicate which side of the table the head of the “encoded” body would set. One more issue is the decades-long suspicion that the tablecloth in the painting is actually the Holy Shroud. This is a thesis defended by archaeologist and Arts critic Yasmin von Hohenstaufen, as well as by the recently deceased physician and author Gabriele Montera. The latter came to present a virtually accurate compatibility of dimensions between the true Shroud and the tablecloth on the table in Da Vinci's masterpiece - which would also explain the strange disproportion of the piece of furniture (inadmissible for someone like Leonardo) with the amount of "accommodated" to adjust.
The 13 characters set in the mural, when out of focus, reminds us of the spectrum of a humanoid figure (PICTURE: WikiCommons / Átila Soares).
Another point is that Átila had also discovered in 2021 a similar body in a drawing attributed to Leonardo, the “Christ from Lecco”, belonging to a private collection.
“Christ from Lecco” (16th century), sketch attributed to Leonardo: The drawing of a male body strongly resembling the Holy Shroud’s (found by Átila in 2021), could set a link among it, the Shroud of Turin as the “Last Supper” itself (PICTURES: GM / Pascal Cotte / Átila Soares – 2022).
Afterwards, considering it’s so strange that the towel did not show any of the marks of the passion, the Brazilian researcher deduced that these must be within the composition, somewhere else. And that's when he did realize that the body could simply be lying on its own towel/shroud. And, if suspicions are correct, for Soares, nothing more reasonable than the Messiah's spectral body to be part of and being presented as a subtle and poetic way over the linen fabric itself: “The image talks for itself: the 13 characters formation in 'Last Supper' has a very high level of compatibility with what must have been the body stamped on the Shroud. Even considering that the artistic-forensic reconstructions bring minor variations, among themselves (mainly in the feet), the general appearance allows to indicate an immense similarity with the iconic painting by Da Vinci - which strongly suggests that, not only the artist was aware of the Sindone , as he had great interest in it”. So he continues: “In spite of being something intentional on Leonardo's part, this practice of hiding references in his creations is a fact already well considered in academic circles, especially in the words of the artist himself in the ‘A Treatise on Painting' (1632). He said: 'We should not despise those who look attentively at the stains on the wall, the coals in the fire, the clouds, the current of the water or similar things which, if well considered, will provide extraordinary creations to awaken the painter's spirit to new and diverse compositions: of battles, of animals and people, landscapes, demons and other fantastic things.'”
Michelangelo did also use the technique of hiding specific elements within a set of various forms. The discovery of the human organs anatomy in the Sistine Chapel's paintings had been made in 2003 by doctor Gilson Barreto and scientist Marcelo G. de Oliveira - both of them from Brazil.
(PICTURES: Frank Lynn Meshberger (top) - 1990 / Frontal Magazine - 2015).
(PICTURES: Frank Lynn Meshberger (top) - 1990 / Frontal Magazine - 2015).
So he concludes: "Furthermore, if Michelangelo did use the technique of hiding specific elements within a set of various forms, why wouldn't Leonardo do the same, as I'm proposing?.. After all, this shouldn't be a unique case where Leonardo would play with the human visual perceptions: A Lutheran minister as Sigmund Freud's follower, Oskar Pfister, had already marked the outlines of a vulture in "Saint Anne, the Virgin and the Child", precisely over Mary's drapery (since the "motherhood" subject has got such a heavy call on this painting). The presence of that bird of prey would confirm Freud's ideas regarding maternity issues over Leonardo, keeping in mind that the vulture is the "Mother" for ancient Egyptian symbolism.
The "Da Vinci's vulture": The bird in Mary's cloth could confirm the ideas by Freud about some issues over "maternity" during Leonardo's childhood.
(PICTURE: Ernest Jones / Garzanti - 1977).
(PICTURE: Ernest Jones / Garzanti - 1977).
For the thoughtful - and unconventional - Leonardo, certainly everything would be worth an exercise in perceptions or reasoning. A game with great potential to make any painting richer and more interesting. So, nothing more ‘leonardesque' than what is suggested here", explains expert Átila Soares.
(OPENING PICTURE: “The Mystery Man” exhibition)