A new 16G pixel image of the magnificent masterpiece is now available online

A 16 billion pixel image of Leonardo da Vinci’s beautiful and thoughtful masterpiece, The Last Supper, is now available for viewing, at no cost, on the internet. Da Vinci painted the famous scene on a wall of the refectory (dining hall) of the Dominican convent of Santa Maria delle Grazie in Milan.

Leonardo Da Vinci’s The Last Supper

The painting has deteriorated significantly since its completion in 1497, primarily because it is not a fresco. Da Vinci Cod (we know how to spell) author Dan Brown seems to have had a problem with, or a disregard for, facts.

There have been several restorations over the centuries and some of the details have diminished, or disappeared. Critics also contend that some of the original coloration has been altered. Nevertheless, viewing the painting, especially in the detail now available, is an artistic, and spiritual, experience that is not to be missed.

The zoom photo technology available on the internet site allows anyone to examine the most minute details of the masterpiece at leisure.

There is a good deal of information about The Last Supper available online, but here are a few of the basics.

In first century Judea, people did not eat on chairs set before a long table. Formal meals were taken reclining on couches. Matthew and John describe the Holy Thursday Saeder in such a setting. The layout of the painting is a simply a renaissance artist’s rendition of a formal dinner, portrayed in a manner which allows the viewer to see the faces of all the participants.

The scene depicts the moment just after Jesus tells the apostles that one of them is about to betray Him. The apostles are portrayed in four groups of three, with Jesus in the center. Based upon an authenticated manuscript, The Notebooks Leonardo Da Vinci pg. 232, the apostles, grouped left to right are

Bartholomew, James the lesser, Andrew
Peter, Judas, John (not Mary Magdalene, which we’ll address shortly)
Thomas, James, Phillip
Matthew, Jude (Thaddeus), Simon

Notable are biblical details, based upon the Gospels, visible by zooming in on certain areas of the painting:

Jesus and Judas each with a hand extended toward a bowl (Matthew & Mark)

Judas clutching the top of a “purse”’ (the bottom of which has deteriorated) either signifying his bag of silver for the betrayal (Matthew), or perhaps merely his office as treasurer for the group (John)

Peter speaking to John, telling him to ask Jesus for the name of the betrayer (John)

Peter holding a knife, likely based upon his later slashing off the ear of Caiaphas’s slave, who was in the group who arrested Jesus (all four gospels)

And finally the clearly feminine characteristics of John’s face, which Brown and other Catholic conspiracy enthusiasts claim is actually a depiction of Mary Magdalene. Let’s refer this to an expert.

Shelley Esaak, Guide to Art History, for About.com wrote in regard to the trumped up controversy:

“Leonardo was from the Republic of Florence and received his artistic training in a workshop of the Florentine School. The Florentine School had a long tradition of often depicting young males as sweet, pretty, rather effeminate persons.”

She goes on to cite fourteen Renaissance paintings, by well known artists of the Florentine School. The paintings, and the complete article, can be viewed here.

“As you can see, when Leonardo’s version of The Last Supper is viewed in context, the John “gender issue” seems less of an issue. Leonardo was sticking to tradition: Biblical (John was the youngest Disciple), Florentine (young men were often love objects) and the Florentine School (young men were often painted as “pretty”). Considering this logically, it would seem reasonable to lend credence to the many art historians who’ve said no, based on contextual evidence Leonardo didn’t paint Mary Magdalene, he painted John. Unless, of course, many art historians have got it all wrong, and the whole Florentine School actually believed that Jesus meant for Mary Magdalene to head His Church.”

Of course, the rest of the Da Vinci Cod nonsense was dispelled, even prior to the release of the film. The History Channel aired a two hour documentary which clearly refuted the major premises of the “sacred bloodline” of Jesus, and the “Priory of Sion”. The same evidence, and more, can be found through simple Google searches.

But like author Brown, facts never deter obsessive atheists and the anti-Christian distant left. They blindly insist that this beautiful renaissance work of biblical, religious art, painted by a Catholic master, is proof positive of the “Jesus hoax”.

Leonardo da Vinci utilized his gift of artistic expression to portray one of the most significant events of the bible in a breathtaking mural.

The technology of the internet enables millions of people to view this masterpiece in greater detail than ever possible. Take the opportunity to spend some time with this beautiful work, and reflect upon its true meaning, while it is still with us.