Leonardo da Vinci - The Virgin and Child with Saint Anne and the Infant Saint John the Baptist ('The Burlington House Cartoon') National Gallery Main Collection
This large drawing of the Virgin Mary, with the Christ Child in her lap, while her mother St Anne looks on, was made in preparation for a painting, probably as a presentation drawing: a full-sized study of what the planned picture might look like. It was, in a sense, intended as a work of art in its own right, unlike other cartoons that were typically used to physically transfer a design of the drawing to the support for painting. Often known as ‘The Burlington House Cartoon’, it is the only surviving large-scale drawing by Leonardo.
The drawing was executed in charcoal and black and white chalk, on eight sheets of paper that are glued together, is dated around 1500. A portion of the cartoon is seen in the upper corner of this 2002 Italian issue.
By 1791, it was inventoried as belonging to the Royal Academy, in London. The cartoon is sometimes still known as the "Burlington House Cartoon", a title once used frequently in reference to the building of the Royal Academy which housed the drawing.
In 1962, the cartoon was put up for sale. Amid fears that it would find an overseas buyer, it was exhibited in the National Gallery where it was seen by more than a quarter of a million people in a little more than four months, many of whom made donations in order to keep the artwork in the United Kingdom. The price was eventually met by donations, thanks in part to contributions from the National Art Collections Fund.
