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Italy Unveiled
The Leonardo Horse statue in Milan was commissioned in 1482, but the original statue was never completed. However, two identical copies were created in 1977 and one of them was donated to the city of Milan. The statue stands in the Galoppo Square and was inaugurated on September 10, 1999.
The Leonardo Horse statue, also known as the “Horse of the Sforza,” is a bronze sculpture created by the Italian artist Leonardo da Vinci. It was commissioned by the Duke of Milan, Ludovico Sforza, in 1482, who wanted a larger-than-life horse to honor his father, Francesco Sforza, a renowned military leader. Leonardo da Vinci began work on the statue in 1483, and it was originally intended to be the largest equestrian statue in the world at the time. However, due to various setbacks, including a shortage of bronze and the French invasion of Milan in 1499, the statue was never completed during da Vinci’s lifetime.
Leonardo dedicated years to the project, making drawings, scale models, and live visions, and finally completed a clay model that stood over 7 meters high and weighed over 10 tons. However, the model was destroyed during the French invasion of Milan in 1499, and the bronze intended for the statue was used to forge weapons and cannons.
One of the main obstacles that Leonardo faced during his time was the limited technology available at the time. With no welding process that could join separate parts, he proposed to cast a colossal bronze horse in one single piece. He worked on several projects, evaluating the pros and cons of various solutions and wanted to create a monument that would exceed the size of all previous equestrian sculptures.
The destruction of the model was a significant blow to Leonardo, who had worked on the project for many years, and he wrote in his notes, “I will speak no more of the horse.” Some of his partial sketches and drawings of the horse survived and are now held at Windsor Castle. The story of the “Gran Cavallo” continued to flourish for at least three generations before falling into obscurity for several centuries.
In 1977, a group of art historians and experts decided to recreate the statue using Leonardo’s original sketches and plans. Two identical copies were created at the Polich Tallix art foundry in Beacon, N.Y. One of the copies was donated by the American people to the city of Milan as a “Tribute to the Renaissance and Leonardo da Vinci.”
The horse was divided into seven parts, shipped to Milan, welded together, and has been in the Galoppo Square ever since. The monument was inaugurated on September 10, 1999, by Mayor Albertini, coinciding with the 500th anniversary of the destruction of the famous giant clay horse by the French archers of King Louis XII. The Leonardo Horse statue is a testament to Leonardo’s incredible artistic skill and his innovative approach to sculpting. It remains a beloved symbol of Milan and a popular tourist attraction to this day, despite the fact that the original statue was never completed. The story of the “Gran Cavallo” serves as a reminder of the power of art to transcend time and space, and the enduring legacy of one of history’s most brilliant minds.
