The Story Behind the Painting of the Last supper
The story of the painting of The Last Supper is extremely interesting and instructive, and
two incidents connected with it afford a most
convincing lesson on the effects of right thinking or wrong thinking in the life of a boy
or girl, or of a man or woman.
Leonardo DaVinci, a noted Italian artist, painted The Last Supper and it took him seven
years to complete. The figures representing the
twelve Apostles and Christ himself were painted from living persons.
The life-model for the painting of the figure of Jesus was chosen first.
When it was decided that DaVinci would paint this great picture, hundreds and hundreds of
young men were carefully viewed in an indeavor
to find a face and personality exhibiting innocence and beauty, free from the scars and
signs of dissipation caused by sin.
Finally, after weeks of a laborious search, a young man nineteen years of age was selected
as a model for the portrayal of Christ. For
six months, DaVinci worked on the production of this leading character of his famous
painting.
During the next six years, DaVinci continued his labors on this sublime work of art. One
by one fitting persons were chosen to represent each of the eleven Apostles with space
being left for the painting of the figure representing Judas Iscariot as the final task of
this masterpiece. This was the Apostle, you remember, who betrayed his Lord for thirty
pieces of silver. For weeks, DaVinci searched for a man with a hard, callous face, with a
countenance marked by scars of varice, deceit, hypocrisy, and crime face that would
delineate a character who would betray his best friend.
After many discouraging experiences in searching for the type of person required to
represent Judas, word came to DaVinci that a man whose appearance fully met his
requirements had been found in a dungeon
in Rome, sentenced to die for a life of crime and murder.
DaVinci made the trip to Rome at once, and this man was brought out from his imprisonment
in the dungeon and led out into the light of
the sun.
There DaVinci saw before him a dark, swarthy man with his long shaggy and unkempt hair
sprawled over his face, which betrayed a character of viciousness and complete ruin. At
last the famous painter had found the person he wanted to represent the character of Judas
in his painting.
By special permission from the king, this prisoner was carried to Milan where the picture
was being painted. For months he sat before
DaVinci at appointed hours each day as the gifted artist diligently continued his task of
transmitting, to his painting, this base
character
representing the traitor and betrayer of our Savior. As he finished his last stroke, he
turned to the guards and said, "I have finished. You
may take the prisoner away." As the guards were leading their prisoner away, he
suddenly broke
loose from their control and rushed up to DaVinci, crying as he did so,"DaVinci, look
at me. Do you not know who I am?"
DaVinci, with the trained eyes of a great character student, carefully scrutinized the man
upon whose face he had constantly gazed for six months and replied, "No, I have never
seen you in my life until you were brought before me out of the dungeon in Rome."
Then, lifting his eyes toward heaven, the prisoner said, "Oh God, have I fallen so
low?"
Then turning his face to the painter he cried, "Leonardo DaVinci, look at me again
for I am the same man you painted just seven years ago as the figure of Christ."
This is the true story of the painting of The Last Supper. It teaches so strongly the
lesson of the effects of right or wrong thinking on the life of an individual. Here was a
young man whose character was so pure, unspoiled by the sins of the world, that he
represented a countenance of innocence and beauty; fit to be used for the painting of a
representation of Christ.
But within seven years, following the thoughts of sin and a life of crime, he was changed
into a perfect picture of the most traitorous character ever known in the history of the
world.
I think God had all of this happen to show us that we can all follow Christ and be like
Him with His help of course; or we can follow sin
and be like Judas.