The third volume of the collection is dedicated to one of the brightest personalities of the Renaissance - the outstanding Italian painter, sculptor, architect, scientist and engineer Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519). During his life, Leonardo da Vinci created only about twelve completed paintings, but each of them became a masterpiece of world painting. Leonardo developed as a master, studying with Andrea del Verrocchio in 1467-1472. In his early works (the head of an angel in Verrocchio’s “Baptism”, “The Annunciation”), he enriches the traditions of Quattrocento painting, emphasizing the smooth three-dimensionality of forms with soft chiaroscuro, enlivening faces with a subtle, subtle smile. In The Adoration of the Magi, the artist transforms a religious image into a mirror of diverse human emotions, developing innovative drawing techniques. Leonardo achieves rare acuity in conveying facial expressions, and brings the structure and movements of the human body into perfect harmony with the dramaturgy of the composition. The period of service under the ruler of Milan, Lodovico Moro (from 1481), saw the creative flowering of Leonardo the painter. The painting “Madonna of the Rocks” dates back to this period (the first version is in the Louvre, the second in the London National Gallery). In the refectory of the monastery of Santa Maria delle Grazie, Leonardo creates the painting “The Last Supper” (1495-1497). The stormy, contradictory reaction of Christ's disciples to his words about the impending betrayal is expressed in clear mathematical laws of the composition, powerfully subjugating not only the drawn, but also the real architectural space. In Leonardo's most famous painting, the portrait of the Mona Lisa (Louvre), the image of a wealthy city dweller appears as a mysterious personification of nature as such, without losing its purely feminine guile. The internal significance of the composition is given by the cosmically majestic and at the same time alarmingly alienated landscape, melting in a cold haze. Leonardo's later works include the painting “St. Anne with Mary and the Child Christ” and the painting “St. John the Baptist.” Leonardo's last painting is full of erotic ambiguity: the young Forerunner here looks not like a holy ascetic, but like a tempter full of sensual charm. The most representative collection of Leonardo's works is presented in the Louvre; two of his paintings ("Madonna Litta" and "Madonna Benois") can be seen in the Hermitage.