According to ISNA, at the same time as Milan is preparing to host the 2026 Wier Olympics, this city will provide access to a special work of “Leonardo da Vinci” for a short period of time. This huge wall and ceiling paiing, which is unfinished, has been hidden inside “Sforza Palace” for ceuries and is usually hidden behind the scaffolding due to restoration.
However, visitors will soon be allowed to climb the towering scaffolding inside the castle’s Sala delle Asse for about five weeks, from February 7 to March 14, to watch restorers at work on the da Vinci fresco. After this five-week window, the work will be locked up again for another 18 mohs, so the upcoming public access will be a rare opportunity to see the paiing up close.
This paiing, which has been hidden under plaster for a long time, was recely evaluated as an original work by “Da Vinci”, the master of the Renaissance. According to the historical letters of Ludovico Sforza, Duke of Milan, this room was paied in 1498 by Da Vinci and his workshop. This paiing lavishly decorates the walls and domed ceiling of this part of the castle with designs of iertwined vine branches on a gazebo, a canopy of 16 trees, and patterns of roots and rocks.
After 1499 AD, the castle was used for military purposes for the next few ceuries and was paied on the walls of the “Sala delle Asse” hall, and the memory of this paiing disappeared. It was at the end of the 19th ceury that traces of the original paiing were discovered. Subseque restorations during the 20th ceury revealed the fresco in its eirety, but the paste pai remains vulnerable. Restorers now use Japanese rice paper with demineralized water to remove salts that have seeped io the walls to clean the surface of the paiing.
During the weeks of the Olympics, this castle will host a special series of tours for the final stage of the hall’s restoration. Visitors can climb the scaffolding and see the green vaults of the room from a few ceimeters away.
This castle has also opened a new exhibition dedicated to the disciples and followers of Da Vinci.
