Leda and the swan
XVI century.Not on display
The drawing of the central figure group is especially weak, and it is hardly possible to make out the form of the swan´s body. Only the presence of the bird´s head, with its bill pecking at Leda´s mouth, permits the identification.
Two closely corresponding studio version of the composition, both superior in detail, are known: one in the Uffizi, Florence (inv. no. 13821F) and other in the Victorian Albert Museum, London (inv. no. Dyce 339). In both it is more evident that the two objects left of center of the foreground, are eggs. Another studio drawing of a closely related composition of the subjects is in the British Museum, London (inv. no. 1946-7-13-1348).
Turner, Nicholas, From Michelangelo to Annibale Carracc: a century of Italian drawings from the Prado, Virginia, Art Services International, 2008, p.265
