De-Mythologizing The Da Vinci Code. The Last Supper

Transcription

1 De-Mythologizing The Da Vinci Code The Last Supper

2 Picture credits will be found at the end of the slideshow. A.pdf version without narration is available at: Martin X. Moleski, SJ Canisius College Buffalo, New York April 23, 2009

3 His name is Leonardo. P Leonardo di ser Piero da Vinci P Da Vinci is not his name--it tells us that his father s home town was Vinci (in the region of Florence, Italy).

4 A Grain of Truth: The Judas Factor P Jesus has been betrayed in every generation by some of those who have been chosen to represent him. P This is a great evil, a great sorrow and a great shame, but it should not come as a surprise to practicing Catholics. P Sin happens. There have been sinful popes, bishops, priests, religious, married couples, single Catholics, etc., since the very beginning of Christianity. P Both the novel and the painting are, arguably, all about unfaithful disciples.

5 The Last Supper: P In a dining room of the Domincan monastery at Santa Maria delle Grazie, Milan; 29' wide x14' high.

6 The Last Supper: P In a dining room of the Domincan monastery at Santa Maria delle Grazie, Milan; 29' wide x14' high. P Not a fresco; tempera on a base made of pitch, gesso, and mastic.

7 The Last Supper: P In a dining room of the Domincan monastery at Santa Maria delle Grazie, Milan; 29' wide x14' high. P Not a fresco; tempera on a base made of pitch, gesso, and mastic. P Four years in the making.

8 The Last Supper: P In a dining room of the Domincan monastery at Santa Maria delle Grazie, Milan; 29' wide x14' high. P Not a fresco; tempera on a base made of pitch, gesso, and mastic. P Four years in the making. P Damaged by humidity. 1517, started to flake; badly deteriorated by 1556 ( ruined ), 58 years after completion.

9 The Last Supper: P In a dining room of the Domincan monastery at Santa Maria delle Grazie, Milan; 29' wide x14' high. P Not a fresco; tempera on a base made of pitch, gesso, and mastic. P Four years in the making. P Damaged by humidity. 1517, started to flake; badly deteriorated by 1556 ( ruined ), 58 years after completion. P Door cut through wall in 1652.

10 The Last Supper: P In a dining room of the Domincan monastery at Santa Maria delle Grazie, Milan; 29' wide x14' high. P Not a fresco; tempera on a base made of pitch, gesso, and mastic. P Four years in the making P Damaged by humidity. 1517, started to flake; badly deteriorated by 1556 ( ruined ), 58 years after completion. P Door cut through wall in P Used as a stable (?) or prison (?) by Napoleon s troops in 1796.

11 The Last Supper: P In a dining room of the Domincan monastery at Santa Maria delle Grazie, Milan; 29' wide x14' high. P Not a fresco; tempera on a base made of pitch, gesso, and mastic. P Four years in the making. P Damaged by humidity. 1517, started to flake; badly deteriorated by 1556 ( ruined ), 58 years after completion. P Door cut through wall in P Used as a stable (?) or prison (?) by Napoleon s troops in P Covered with green mold after a flood in 1800.

12 The Last Supper: P In a dining room of the Domincan monastery at Santa Maria delle Grazie, Milan; 29' wide x14' high. P Not a fresco; tempera on a base made of pitch, gesso, and mastic. P Four years in the making. P Damaged by humidity. 1517, started to flake; badly deteriorated by 1556 ( ruined ), 58 years after completion. P Door cut through wall in P Used as a stable (?) or prison (?) by Napoleon s troops in P Covered with green mold after a flood in P Badly damaged in 1821 when an expert tried to take it off the wall (he thought it was a fresco).

13 The Last Supper: P In a dining room of the Domincan monastery at Santa Maria delle Grazie, Milan; 29' wide x14' high. P Not a fresco; tempera on a base made of pitch, gesso, and mastic. P Four years in the making. P Damaged by humidity. 1517, started to flake; badly deteriorated by 1556 ( ruined ), 58 years after completion. P Door cut through wall in P Used as a stable (?) or prison (?) by Napoleon s troops in P Covered with green mold after a flood in P Badly damaged in 1821 when an expert tried to take it off the wall (he thought it was a fresco). P Ceiling destroyed by a bomb in 1943.

14 The Last Supper: P In a dining room of the Domincan monastery at Santa Maria delle Grazie, Milan; 29' wide x14' high. P Not a fresco; tempera on a base made of pitch, gesso, and mastic. P Four years in the making. P Damaged by humidity. 1517, started to flake; badly deteriorated by 1556 ( ruined ), 58 years after completion. P Door cut through wall in P Used as a stable (?) or prison (?) by Napoleon s troops in P Covered with green mold after a flood in P Badly damaged in 1821 when an expert tried to take it off the wall (he thought it was a fresco). P Ceiling destroyed by a bomb in P Restored ; watercolors used to fill in missing sections.

15 P European room, models, clothing, furniture, utensils, etc. P Daylight seen outside--not evening (?). P Local Italian scenery, not Jerusalem!.

16 The Names of the Apostles Verified by names and sketches in a notebook of Leonardo found in the nineteenth century.

17 An early copy--with names added Ponte Capriasca - Chiesa di S. Ambrogio Cesare da Sesto ( ) was an Italian painter of the Renaissance active in Milan and elsewhere in Italy.

18 Bartholomew, James the lesser, Andrew

19 Judas, Peter, and John (the beloved disciple)

20 Thomas (the doubter), James the Greater, Philip

21 Matthew, Jude Thaddeus, and Simon

22 Not a Seder (Passover Meal) -- Leavened bread & fish. No passover Lamb Copy -- Tongerlo, Belgium. Done in oil on cavas 47 years after the Last Supper was finished; undamaged; therefore, clearer than the original is now. Nearly full-size!

23 John vs. Synoptics P Synoptic = lookalike gospels = Matthew, Mark, Luke.

24 John vs. Synoptics P Synoptic = lookalike gospels = Matthew, Mark, Luke. P The synoptics say that the Last Supper was a Passover meal and that Jesus died the day after Passover.

25 John vs. Synoptics P Synoptic = lookalike gospels = Matthew, Mark, Luke. P The synoptics say that the Last Supper was a Passover meal and that Jesus died the day after Passover. P John says that the Last Supper was not a Passover meal. In John, Jesus dies on Preparation Day at the very hour that the lambs were being slaughtered--hence, Jesus is The Lamb of God and we, like the Jews in Egypt, are saved by the blood of the Lamb.

26 John vs. Synoptics P Synoptic = lookalike gospels = Matthew, Mark, Luke. P The synoptics say that the Last Supper was a Passover meal and that Jesus died the day after Passover. P John says that the Last Supper was not a Passover meal. In John, Jesus dies on Preparation Day at the very hour that the lambs were being slaughtered--hence, Jesus is The Lamb of God and we, like the Jews in Egypt, are saved by the blood of the Lamb. P Passover could fall on any day of the week (lunar calendar).

27 John vs. Synoptics P Synoptic = lookalike gospels = Matthew, Mark, Luke. P The synoptics say that the Last Supper was a Passover meal and that Jesus died the day after Passover. P John says that the Last Supper was not a Passover meal. In John, Jesus dies on Preparation Day at the very hour that the lambs were being slaughtered--hence, Jesus is The Lamb of God and we, like the Jews in Egypt, are saved by the blood of the Lamb. P Passover could fall on any day of the week (lunar calendar). P Synoptic view: Thursday = Passover, Friday = day after Passover.

28 John vs. Synoptics P Synoptic = lookalike gospels = Matthew, Mark, Luke. P The synoptics say that the Last Supper was a Passover meal and that Jesus died the day after Passover. P John says that the Last Supper was not a Passover meal. In John, Jesus dies on Preparation Day at the very hour that the lambs were being slaughtered--hence, Jesus is The Lamb of God and we, like the Jews in Egypt, are saved by the blood of the Lamb. P Passover could fall on any day of the week (lunar calendar). P Synoptic view: Thursday = Passover, Friday = day after Passover. P John s view: Thursday = an ordinary meal, Friday = Preparation Day (the day before Passover), Saturday = Passover + Sabbath.

29 The Case of the Missing Grail P The synoptic gospels all say that the Eucharist was first celebrated during the Last Supper (Passover).

30 The Case of the Missing Grail P The synoptic gospels all say that the Eucharist was first celebrated during the Last Supper (Passover). P John s account of the Last Supper makes no mention of the consecration of the bread and the wine. Instead, the meal begins with the Washing of the Feet. John s theology of the Eucharist is in Chapter 6: I am the Bread of Life....My body is real food and my blood is real drink.

31 The Case of the Missing Grail P The synoptic gospels all say that the Eucharist was first celebrated during the Last Supper (Passover). P John s account of the Last Supper makes no mention of the consecration of the bread and the wine. Instead, the meal begins with the Washing of the Feet. John s theology of the Eucharist is in Chapter 6: I am the Bread of Life....My body is real food and my blood is real drink. P The word grail and the legends about the cup (or chalice) used by Jesus at the Last Supper date to the 14th century. The quest for the Holy Grail has become a staple of Western literature (King Arthur, Indiana Jones movie).

32 The Case of the Missing Grail P The synoptic gospels all say that the Eucharist was first celebrated during the Last Supper (Passover). P John s account of the Last Supper makes no mention of the consecration of the bread and the wine. Instead, the meal begins with the Washing of the Feet. John s theology of the Eucharist is in Chapter 6: I am the Bread of Life....My body is real food and my blood is real drink. P The word grail and the legends about the cup (or chalice) used by Jesus at the Last Supper date to the 14th century. The quest for the Holy Grail has become a staple of Western literature (King Arthur, Indiana Jones movie). P Leonardo has no grail at the table because he is following John s version of the Last Supper, not the Synoptic version.

33 One of You Will Betray Me Jn 13:21

34 Surely not I, Lord!? Doubting Thomas, James (brother of Jesus), Philip

35 The disciples looked at one another, uncertain of whom He spoke (Jn 13:21). Bartholomew, James the Younger, Andrew Matthew, Thaddeus (Jude), Simon

36 One of his disciples, whom Jesus loved, was lying close to the breast of Jesus; so Simon Peter beckoned to him and said, Tell us who it is of whom he speaks (Jn 13:23-24). Later in the garden: Then Simon Peter, having a sword, drew it and struck the high priest s slave and cut off his right ear (Jn 18:10). The sword is clearly in Peter s right hand. He leans over behind Judas to ask the Beloved Disciple to ask Jesus who will betray Him. There are no extra hands in the painting. The twist in Peter s arm and wrist is hard to see in the original (top left picture and bottom left).

37 Peter holds the knife.

38 Ponte Capriasca - Chiesa di S. Ambrogio

39 It is he to whom I shall give this morsel when I have dipped it (Jn 13:26) With his right hand, Jesus reaches toward the morsel. The dish with a sauce is between his right hand and Judas left hand.

40 Surreal symbolism: encoded meanings. P We can see the top of the table as well as the feet underneath--it must be terribly slanted. P The table has only front legs. P The table is absurdly narrow. P All 12 apostles are on one side of the table--no room for all to sit (or recline, as the Jews would do). P There are multiple sources of light--windows, faces, feet. P The painting is full of symbols (far more than I can enumerate here): Jesus alone in the center--full of serenity, with the word me still on His lips. The sword in Peter s hand points to Andrew--tradition says he was flayed to death. Judas is holding the sack with the pieces of silver in it. Judas face alone is in shadow. Judas has tipped over a bowl of salt. Thomas, the Doubter, raises his index finger to indicate his disbelief.

41 Another Last Supper -- Ghirlandaio, ~1486

42 The Disciple Whom Jesus Loved (Jn 13:23) The real problem stems from our lack of familiarity with types. In his Treatise on Painting, Leonardo explains that each figure should be painted according to his station and age. A wise man has certain characteristics, an old woman others, and children others still. A classic type, common to many Renaissance paintings, is the student. A favored follower, a protégé or disciple, is always portrayed as very youthful, long-haired and clean-shaven; the idea being that he has not yet matured to the point where he must find his own way. Throughout the Renaissance, artists portray St. John in this fashion. He is the disciple Jesus loved the only one who will be at the foot of the cross [according to the Gospel of John; the synoptics say that all the disciples abandoned Jesus]. He is the ideal student. To the Renaissance artist the only way to show St. John was as a beardless youth, with none of the hard, determined physiognomy of men. The Last Supper of Ghirlandaio and Andrea del Castagno show a similarly soft, young John. Dr. Elizabeth Lev, Gallery of Renaissance portraits of young men:

43 Leonardo s Effeminate Men P Leonardo was not flamboyantly gay as Brown asserts, although he was jailed once on charges of assaulting a boy model (Leonardo was acquitted), never married, had close male friends all his life, and made women look like men and men look like women. Many of his figures are androgynous.

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45 Mona Lisa a Self-Portrait?

46 Is the Painting Really about Mary?

47 Is the Painting Really about Mary?

48 Is the Painting Really about Mary? No. It is about Jesus, Who sits alone at the center of the composition.

49 Leonardo s Perspective: Centered on Jesus

50 Leonardo s Perspective cont d

51 The big question: Will you also betray me?

52 Credits This site allows you to zoom in on parts of the painting in very high resolution. You can see the difference between the surviving paint chips and the watercolors used by the restorers to fill in the blanks.

53 In the slideshow, I brightened these picures using Picasa.

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66 Hard questions.