Leda
c. 1515-1520 Uffizi Gallery, Florence
About this artwork
This oil painting depicts the mythological figure Leda embracing a swan, while four infants emerge from broken eggs at her feet, set within a lush landscape. It is a significant work from the High Renaissance period.
Did you know?
The myth of Leda and the Swan describes how Zeus, king of the gods, transformed into a swan to seduce Leda, the queen of Sparta. From this union, Leda laid two eggs, from which Helen (of Troy) and Clytemnestra, along with Castor and Pollux, were born. This painting is considered a key work by Francesco Melzi, a pupil and artistic heir of Leonardo da Vinci, and closely relates to Leonardo's own lost painting of the subject.
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Leda
Francesco Melzi, c. 1515-1520
