LEADER 00000cam  2200277 i 4500 
003    DLC 
005    20220901152249.0 
008    211123s2022    nyua     b    000 0 eng   
010      2021057123 
020    9780385546119|q(hardcover) 
040    DLC|beng|erda|cDLC|dGCmBT|dNjBwBT|dUtOrBLW 
042    pcc 
092    759.5|bLEO 
100 1  Collinsworth, Eden,|eauthor. 
245 10 What the ermine saw :|bthe extraordinary journey of 
       Leonardo da Vinci's most mysterious portrait /|cEden 
       Collinsworth. 
264  1 New York :|bDoubleday,|c[2022] 
300    253 pages :|billustrations (some color) ;|c22 cm 
336    text|btxt|2rdacontent 
337    unmediated|bn|2rdamedia 
338    volume|bnc|2rdacarrier 
504    Includes bibliographical references (pages 243-250). 
520    "In the tradition of The Lady in Gold and The Hare with 
       the Amber Eyes, the remarkable story behind one of 
       history's most enigmatic portraits. Five hundred and 
       thirty years ago, a young woman sat for her portrait, 
       which was to be painted by a tall, Grecian-nosed artist 
       known as Leonardo da Vinci. Her name was Cecilia Gallerani,
       and she was the teenage mistress of the Duke of Milan. 
       With shining hair and alabaster skin, and a thin veil 
       framing her delicate features, Gallerani held a white 
       ermine-an emblem of pregnancy and childbirth-close to her 
       breast. Their slender bodies appeared almost as one. Her 
       lover, Ludovico Sforza, was a ruthless man who was 
       betrothed to the daughter of a powerful family; he was 
       aware that da Vinci's brilliance as a painter would not 
       only capture his mistress's beauty, but reflect Sforza's 
       own political prowess. Indeed, with this beguiling image, 
       da Vinci revolutionized the genre, changing not just what 
       a portrait looked like, but also its purpose. While the 
       painting faithfully captures the young woman's likeness, 
       it also bears something deeper: the essence of a "soul," 
       one conveyed with brush strokes and more effectively than 
       with words used by any writer. But despite the work's 
       importance in its own time, no records of it exist during 
       the two hundred and fifty years that followed Gallerani's 
       death. Author Eden Collinsworth illuminates the startling 
       history of this unique masterpiece, as it journeyed for 
       over five centuries from one owner to the next-from the 
       cunning Milanese duke, likely to have murdered his seven-
       year-old nephew for the title, to an unconventional Polish
       noblewoman, who counted as acquaintances Benjamin Franklin
       and Voltaire. From Hitler, who designated it for his 
       private collection, to Hans Frank, the Nazi high command 
       in Poland, who hung it above his desk until it was 
       returned after the War to the Czartoryski Museum in 
       Kraków. Along the way, Collinsworth reveals a bewildering 
       maze of social alliances and cultural upheavals, 
       polarizing political divisions and territorial 
       fragmentation. Expertly researched and deftly told, What 
       the Ermine Saw is an enthralling account of Renaissance 
       Italy and its actors; a comprehensive study of artistry 
       and innovation; a riveting tale of Nazi plunder; of art 
       lost and found; and a reminder that genius, power, and 
       beauty always have a price"--|cProvided by publisher. 
600 00 Leonardo,|cda Vinci,|d1452-1519.|tLady with an ermine. 
650  0 Art|xProvenance.