For the first time in centuries, the public gets to stand inches from a Leonardo da Vinci mural that's normally locked away. From February 7 to March 14, during the Milano Cortina Winter Olympics, Italian officials are opening the Sala delle Asse in Sforza Castle for guided tours. Visitors will climb a 20-foot scaffold to see the late 15th-century work up close—close enough to notice the delicate brushwork Leonardo left unfinished more than 500 years ago.
Leonardo started painting the mural in 1498, covering the ceiling and walls with intertwined vines, branches, roots and rocks. But he never finished. A year later, the French invaded Milan, and Leonardo fled the city, abandoning the work. For centuries, the mural disappeared under plaster. It wasn't until the late 1800s and early 1900s that historians and archaeologists began carefully peeling back the layers and rediscovering what lay beneath.
The mural was covered by plaster for centuries after Milan was seized by France. Roberto Serra / Iguana Press / Getty Images
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Start Your News DetoxThis five-week window is also a chance to watch conservation in action. During the tours, visitors will see restorers using Japanese rice paper and demineralized water to remove salt deposits that have seeped into the ceiling and walls over the centuries—a painstaking process designed to clean the artwork without damaging Leonardo's original tempera paint. As Luca Tosi, the castle's heritage curator, explains: "The hardest part is that Leonardo's painting is very delicate, there are some liftings, there are more fragile parts and therefore the work must be done centimeter by centimeter, with the utmost attention and care."
The castle is also marking the moment with two new Leonardo-themed exhibitions. A multimedia installation in the Panoramic Rooms will explore Leonardo's influence on the Sforza court, while a redesigned gallery will showcase works by the "Leonardeschi"—artists trained in Leonardo's workshop or inspired by his style, including portraits by Bernardino Luini and Bernardo Zenale.
Once March arrives, the mural closes again for 18 months of final restoration work. This brief opening represents a rare convergence: a global sporting event, a restored masterpiece, and a moment when one of history's greatest minds becomes, for just five weeks, within arm's reach.
