Head of a man with protruding chin and snub nose looking upwards in profile to left

Art Historical Context

This delicate etching, titled *Head of a Man withtruding Chin and Sn Nose Looking Upwards in Profile to Left*, the keen observation of Renaissance master Leonardo da Vinci, faithfully reproduced by 17th-century Bohemiancher Wenceslaus Hol between 1644 and 1752. Measuring just over 2 inches, it depicts a rugged male profile gazing upward, showcasing Leonardo's fascination with human anatomy and expressive physiognomy. Hollar, renowned for his meticulous reproductions of Old Master drawings, rendered this as a single-state etching—the only edition—preserving Leonardo's original silverpoint or metalpoint sketch for posterity. Leonardo's head studies, often drawn from life or imagined grotesques, explored character, emotion, and proportion, influencing generations of artists during the High Renaissance. Hollar's etching technique, using acid to bite intricate lines into a copper plate, allowed for fine tonal gradations and textures that mimic Leonardo's subtle modeling, making complex drawings accessible to collectors across Europe amid the print boom of the Baroque era. Acquired by The Metropolitan Museum of Art in 1917 through the Joseph Pulitzer Bequest, this print exemplifies the bridge between Renaissance innovation and 17th-century printmaking artistry, inviting visitors to ponder the timeless curiosity in a single, upward glance.

About the Artist

Leonardo da Vinci|Wenceslaus Hollar · 1452–1519

Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519) stands as the quintessential Renaissance polymath, whose genius spanned painting, sculpture, architecture, science, mathematics, engineering, anatomy, geology, cartography, botany, and writing. Born in Vinci, Italy, as the illegitimate son of a notary, Leonardo received limited formal education but demonstrated extraordinary artistic talent from an early age. His appr...