Leonardo's Virgin of the Rocks (or Madonna of the Rocks, c.1486) is a masterpiece. Scholars have been unclear, however, about the unconventional cave setting and where Leonardo's inspiration came from. The Song of Songs mentions a beautiful bride being invited to come "into the wall of rocks," and the apocryphal Gospel of James (written around 150 A.D.) tells the story of Jesus being born in a cave outside of Bethlehem. But Leonardo's own personal cave experience in 1481 spurred his desire to find literature that placed Jesus' birth in a cave, or a "wall of rocks." This thesis focuses on a specific discourse prominent in Leonardo scholarship which has taken place over the years, chiefly concerning Leonardo's strange cave background in the Virgin of the Rocks.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:USF/oai:scholarcommons.usf.edu:etd-2665 |
| Date | 12 July 2010 |
| Creators | Jahosky, Michael Thomas |
| Publisher | Scholar Commons |
| Source Sets | University of South Flordia |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Source | Graduate Theses and Dissertations |
| Rights | default |
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