Lady with ermine
Lady with an Ermine
Lady with an Ermine is a painting by Leonardo da Vinci, around 14891490. The painting is one
of only four female portraits Leonardo painted. Despite sustaining much damage the surface is
much rubbed, the background was lightly overpainted with unmodulated black, the upper left
corner has been broken and repaired, a transparent veil on the model's head was turned into an
extravagant hairdo and several fingers were grossly retouched - it is nonetheless in better
condition than many of Leonardo's other paintings.
The sitter's hair is confined tightly to her head under a very fine net veil with a woven border of
gold-wound threads. As in many of Leonardo's portraits, the composition comprises a pyramidic
spiral and the sitter is caught in the motion of turning to her left, reflecting Leonardo's life-long
preoccupation with the dynamics of movement
annaabi.ee 
