Benois Madonna

One of Leonardo’s earliest paintings, the Benois Madonna reveals the artist’s painterly and compositional skill. The holy figures interact with one another in an emotionally evocative and harmonious way. The Madonna, depicted in contemporary dress, shares a flower with her son. Both this and the small crucifix in the child’s hand reference the Passion that Christ will endure at the end of his life.

In violation of their Non-Aggression Pact, the Germans invaded Russia on June 22, 1941. The Benois Madonna was one of the first masterpieces in the Hermitage to be removed from the wall and packed for evacuation.  It was among the more than one-million items on a train that departed Leningrad (St. Petersburg) on July 1, 1941, bound for a repository at Sverdlovsk in Siberia.  It was not returned to the Hermitage until October 10, 1945.

Learn more about the Benois Madonna at the Hermitage