New Da Vinci Theory
The Associated Press is reporting that an amateur scholar has come up with yet another theory about Leonardo da Vinci’s The Last Supper painting. The scholar, Slavisa Pesci, says that superimposing a horizontally reverses image of The Last Supper on itself reveals several images, including Jesus blessing the bread, a baby being held in the arms of one of the men, and a Templar knight. A number of sites are carrying the article, but here is a link to the MSNBC version of the AP story.
When the story broke, so many people rushed to several Da Vinci sites that those sites crashed. I could not find Pesci’s image, but I found a similar picture done by someone else that was available in Wikipedia’s image section. I have circled the relevant areas and included that picture here (click on the image to view a larger version).
The apostle who is supposedly holding the baby looks more like he is strangling one of the other disciples, while the figure on the far left looks vaguely like a knight (though not necessarily of the Templar order). With Jesus in the middle holding out his arms, it is easy to see how him holding out both arms in to the side looks similar to paintings of Jesus blessing people (the reversal makes both palms appear to be facing upwards). The patterns in Jesus’s clothes also maybe sorta possibly look like a chalice.
While I am far from convinced by looking at the picture, I have not read Pesci’s arguments (I can’t find them online). It would not be surprising for da Vinci to do something like this. He enjoyed this kind of fun with mathematics. It has been suggested, for instance, that da Vinci used a mirror image of himself as part of the model for La Joconde (a.k.a., Mona Lisa). But this implies that da Vinci could imagine someone looking at his painting, mentally reversing it, and superimposing a semitransparent version of the reversal back onto the original painting. Perhaps da Vinci could perform such a mental trick, but I doubt many others could, even if the idea of doing it occurred to them. If it were a hidden message, it was a hidden message only he could read.1
Of course, even if it turns out the Pesci is correct, none of this adds any evidence to the odd theories that Jesus and Mary Magdalene had a child whose descendants are protected by the Knights Templar. All it would show is that da Vinci thought that they did, and da Vinci had access to far less historical material than we do. Even if he were a member of some secret society, there is no reason to think that the secret society had better historical information. Secret societies have secret information, but just because something is a secret does not mean it is correct.
- Very few people in da Vinci’s day possessed the kind of technology that would allow them to superimpose transparent images on each other. Remember, back then computers took up an entire room and were much too expensive for individuals to own. [back]
On July 28th, 2007 at 12:06 pm
We live in strange times, so strange that Yahoo would take time away from its busy Bollywood crap to focus on this obvious optical illusion. Go to the website. You see that the “Templar Knight” is just the guy in the cape on the left planted over the guy on the right, his “helmet” is just black space that his head covers. The guy already looked kind of like a knight before Pesci’s magic. Also, you are right. The “baby” is just a head. I don’t mean to defend Christianity here, but for the sake of logic and reason, I have to wonder about all these crazy theories.
On July 28th, 2007 at 12:19 pm
Also, the photo on you site is different than what I have seen. Yours looks doctored, like they only are showing the mirror image on one side, not the other, which shows similar stuff, they want you think there is more to it than there really is. The “chalice” looks more like a Sacred Heart picture than a cup, still an illusiion.
On July 28th, 2007 at 12:33 pm
The picture here is not the one done by Pesci. It is taken from Wikipedia.
I agree that the Jesus image looks more like a Sacred Heart picture. That was actually the first thing that came to my mind when I first saw it. Of course, a heart is a horizontally symmetrical image, so it is not surprising that a mirrored picture would produce it.
On July 30th, 2007 at 9:10 am
Take a look … http://voip-tech.blogspot.com/2007/07/da-pesci-code.html
On July 31st, 2007 at 4:07 am
The DaVinci project has been under way since 2005 with hundreds of “Pictures within Pictures.”. We are in the process of building a comprehensive documentary presenting these extraordinary findings.
Leonardo da Vinci, ” Pictures Within Pictures ”
Outside the box, outside the frame
An intimate and divine truth hidden for centuries at last unveiled in the Mona Lisa, and yes, in other of Leonardo’s works including his first recorded drawing, the Landscape of the Arno Valley and his masterpiece, The Virgin and Child with St. Anne and the infant St. John the Baptist, “the last supper” and others as well.
Anew never before recognized perspective hidden for five hundred years in plain sight, Emerges! Leonardo’s message, Pictures Within Picturthes outside the box, outside the frame,, initially discovered and documented in 2005 by Michael Domoretsky of Ipswich Massachusetts.
Five hundred years after Leonardo’s lifetime, his genius and message come to light in mirrors and optical illusions. His ” secret code” have been hidden in plain sight to be deciphered outside the original borders of the painting using a ” perpendicular reverse mirror image process.” Leonardo, (actually Lionardo ) was a man of formidable intellect, talent, craft and most importantly a man of curiosity who observed ” truth ” in the world in all its forms…Physical, Philosophical, and Religious. He was hundreds of years ahead of his time, constrained by the religious tenets and politics of his day. As a result he was unable to express reality, as he perceived it, and so devised a means by which to conceal his truths from all those whom he did not want to understand them for fear of persecution. Being a man of science and art as well as one of the most inventive men of all time, he appears to have imbued his art with multiple levels of meaning; at one level beautiful works of art…On a second and un-deciphered level, until Michael W. Domoretsky discovered the images and processes invented by Leonardo da Vinci, in 2005, appears to challenge the dogma of his day and pass on his beliefs, observations and truths using a process that only one who perceived the world outside the accepted realm, a scientist or mathematician might discover.
The more in-dept and familiar one becomes with Leonardo the man, the more these unique finds make sense. Unlike other artist that are painters first, painting what they see or the impression of what they see, Leonardo appears to have been a scientist and inventor first, then artist, using his sharp powers of observation and reason to create both timeless works of art and as yet not fully deciphered messages for those not limited by traditional thinking.
The more carefully his words, deeds, apparent opinions and interest are studied,
the more credence can be given to his seeking to preserve his thoughts and observations by unorthodox means.
Leonardo left clues… He was credited with having said; the eye, ” Who would believe that so small a space could contain the images of all the universe.” Leonardo believed that the perception by the eye; light, dark, shadow, and perspective held the secrets of the world. Hence, when you include Leonardo’s life long fascination with mirrors and writing backward it appears likely that he would choose to use constructs and concepts familiar and unique to him to transmit and yet hide from a restrictive and turbulent society, his most treasured messages.
For hundreds of years scholars have continued to study Leonardo’s priceless works of art using the most cutting edge technologies available. In recent times millions of dollars have been allocated to perform all types of scientific studies seeking to determine if Leonardo hid anything underneath his finished works…all within the frame of his artworks. The plain and obvious truth is that he did hide things… however Leonardo was forced to work within the limitations and utilized the technologies of his day. His meanings are in plain sight but only for those able to think outside the box and frame. All of the writings and documents relating to Leonardo, point to his being deliberate and patient in everything he did, both in his creations and his art; so it would appear all but inconceivable that in his major and personally treasured works, that every detail would have been a deliberate act of thought, and not an inadvertent inclusion. A minor anomaly in a masterpiece might happen, though unlikely in multiple of masterpieces by such a perfectionist. Clearly recognizable, perfectly formed symmetrical symbols on both sides of his best masterpieces, utilizing mirrors, a technique Leonardo was well know to have used, make it being anything but intentional, all but impossible. You be the judge.
We welcome comments by all interested parties and will post appropriate comments.
All rights reserved, no unauthorized copying or republishing without express written permission by owner.
Copyright; Michael W. Domoretsky / http://www.lionardofromvinci.com / 2005~2007~
Da Vinci and the Secret of the Mona Lisa, article by: ThothWeb, http://www.thothweb.com/article-4011–0-0.html
The da Vinci Project
Managing Director: Michael W. Domoretsky Director: M. Graham Noll
My response to the article by ANSA.it
The Secret image ‘found’ in Last Supper
My Response: Dated 7-27-07 below:
Madonna, Templar hidden in masterpiece, says expert.
Pesci Slavisa has indeed found one of the many “Pictures in Pictures” outside the box, outside the frame, encrypted by Leonardo da Vinci in his various paintings found originally by Michael Domoretsy and the DaVinci project in 2005. We congratulate Mr. Slavisa on independently duplicating our discoveries, if indeed, they are the same process we discovered. We welcome independent corroboration and recognition of images that use the “perpendicular reverse mirror imaging process” and the “optical illusion “Leonardo da Vinci invented to encrypt, “Pictures With Pictures” a technique first discovered, understood, and documented in 2005 by Mr. Michael W. Domoretsky of Ipswich Massachusetts u.s.a.
As usual, as is our experience repeated time and time again, renowned art critics and professed art experts, such Vittorio Scarbi and many others, base their opinions on accepted art world and art education precepts looking at DaVinci’s works as artists not scientists, inventors and very likely a member of the Mason’s guild (though unproven). Few if any of these “accepted” experts have read his notes in detail or studied the man himself and thus fail to understand and make the connection that he worked outside the box. DaVinci was known to have used mirrors extensively in his writings. It is therefore highly likely and to be expected that he would do something similar in his paintings if he sought to hide ideas, concepts or opinions.
We submit that only someone “as ignorant as a goat” could fail even to consider that a man of DaVinci’s genius and propensity for innovation might possibly think and communicate outside the box, with hidden images, or hide his, what might possibly be considered, heretic or dangerous free thinking ideas by encrypting them in his works of art.
As always it is difficult to persuade experts professing established thought in any field to consider new, alternate or previously un accepted ideas…. But then the experts thought the world was flat for centuries…
The da Vinci Project
Managing Director,
Michael W. Domoretsky
On August 11th, 2007 at 2:08 pm
If you really want to actually SEE the images everyone is talking about, go here: http://www.tinyurl.com/2y884f
These are the best images on the entire Web and there are close-ups of individual people you can enlarge.