Reconsideration on the attribution of the Leonardeschi paintings with IR images

2023 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 19K00178
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Review Section: Basic Section 01060:History of arts-related
• Research Institution: Tokyo Zokei University
• Principal Investigator: Ikegami Hidehiro 東京造形大学, 造形学部, 教授 (00409806)
• Project Period (FY): 2019-04-01 – 2024-03-31
• Keywords: 帰属問題 / レオナルド・ダ・ヴィンチ / レオナルド派 / 赤外線撮影 / 下絵 / ルネサンス / イタリア美術 / 図像

Outline of Final Research Achievements

1) 36 works were photographed with infrared light. Of these, the results confirmed the attribution of the works to Leonardeschi, which had been previously assumed. The results of the other 7 works largely denied the attribution. However, in one of the works, although the pigment layer was added by a later date, some Leonardo-like elements were clearly found in the underpainting level.
2) For about half of the works that are almost certain to be attributed to Leonardo, infrared photography was used to examine how the "divergence and change" between the underpainting and the present state of the work occurred. Using the results, I attempted to digitally restore the works based as closely as possible on the infrared photographs.
3) I then attempted to estimate the paths of transmission of the iconography of the four thematic groups of works. For all of them, I could determine, to some extent, the paths of transmission, starting with Leonardo, within the workshop and out of the workshop.

Free Research Field

美術史

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

赤外線撮影写真による帰属判定の有効性が一層明らかとなったことに加え、それらの結果に基づく主題と図像の伝播経路の推定も可能となることが得られた。レオナルド派のみならず、帰属問題を抱える絵画作品のうち、赤外線撮影がおこなわれていない作品はまだ無数にあるため、今後はこの手法を適用する際のモデルとなりえる。
同時に、本研究成果は、単に帰属問題のいくつかを解決したにとどまらない。なぜならレオナルド派の思想はフランス他で引き継がれ、その後の西洋文化の展開に大きな役割を果たしたからで、にもかかわらず、その伝播経路の実態が明らかではなかったことによる。本研究は、こうした目的の研究にとってもモデルとなるだろう。