Leonardo da Vinci is a world subject and one of the greatest collections of his work is owned by Her Majesty the Queen within the Royal Collection Trust, housed in the Royal Library at Windsor Castle and some of his finest works housed within the Royal Collection will be reproduced on stamps.
On the 500th anniversary of the death of Leonardo da Vinci 144 of his finest drawings from Royal Collection Trust are being displayed during 2019 at 12 museums and galleries across the United Kingdom. Each of 12 locations will have an exhibition of 12 of these drawings from 1 Feb – 6 May 2019,
before all coming together for an exhibition at the Queen’s Gallery, London.
The twelve Special Stamps in this set feature a selection of his drawings from the collection acquired for the Royal Collection by King Charles II around 1670. Royal Collection Trust is a registered charity which looks after the Royal Collection and manages the public opening of the official residences of Her Majesty The Queen. It holds an extensive collection of Leonardo’s drawings in existence, housed in the Royal Library at Windsor Castle.
Leonardo is the archetypal Renaissance man, world renowned as a painter but also a sculptor, architect, designer, engineer and supreme draughtsman. His drawings are universally recognised as among the most technically accomplished of any artist.The full collection of around 600 of his drawings at Windsor Castle is among the most important in the world, and has been pre-eminent in the study of Leonardo
for centuries.
Royal Mail has worked closely with the expert curator at Windsor Castle on selecting one drawing to be exhibited at each of the 12 locations for a set of 12 first class stamps, and where the range of Leonardo’s interests and artistic mediums, from botanical illustrations; animals; anatomy; engineering; studies for sculptures; life studies of models and for his paintings such as the Last Supper are represented.
Regional locations are: Sunderland; Southampton; Belfast; Liverpool; Cardiff; Birmingham; Bristol; Sheffield; Glasgow; Leeds; Manchester; Aberdeen