Long thought to be a copy of a lost original veiled with overpainting , it was rediscovered, restored, and included in an exhibition of Leonardo's work at the National Gallery , London, in β The painting depicts Jesus Christ in anachronistic blue Renaissance attire, making the sign of the cross with his right hand, while holding a transparent, non-refracting crystal orb in his left, signalling his role as Salvator Mundi and representing the ' celestial sphere ' of the heavens.
Approximately thirty copies and variations of the work by pupils and followers of Leonardo have been identified; two are considered to have been produced during Leonardo's lifetime. Although Prince Badr allegedly made the purchase on behalf of Abu Dhabi's Department of Culture and Tourism , [ 7 ] [ 8 ] shortly afterwards it was reported that he was a stand-in bidder for his close ally, the Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
Art historians have suggested several possibilities for when the work was executed and who the patron may have been. Because of the specificity of the subject, Leonardo's Salvator Mundi was probably commissioned by a specific patron rather than produced on speculation.
The painting would have been used in the context of personal devotion, as were other panels of this size and subject in the sixteenth century. The Salvator Mundi as an image type predates Leonardo. Thus, Martin Kemp argues that on the one hand Leonardo was constrained in his composition by the expected iconography of the Salvator Mundi , but on the other hand, he was able to use the image as a vehicle for spiritual communication between the spectator and the likeness of Christ. This image shows Christ at full length rather than the bust-length portrayals of later paintings of the Salvator Mundi.
It has been suggested that Leonardo based his composition on this specific example. There are at least thirty copies and variations of the painting executed by Leonardo's pupils and followers , as counted by Robert Simon. This is so much the case that Joanne Snow-Smith proposed it to be the original painting in Leonardo's studio and his followers likewise produced at least four Salvator Mundi panels depicting a youthful Christ who is less frontal in his pose and who holds a terrestrial globe.
