A Neural Network Looks at Leonardo’s(?) Salvator Mundi

Abstract

Abstract The authors use convolutional neural networks (CNNs) to analyze authorship questions surrounding the works of Leonardo da Vinci—in particular, Salvator Mundi, the world’s most expensive painting and among the most controversial. Trained on the works of an artist under study and visually comparable works of other artists, the authors’ system can identify likely forgeries and shed light on attribution controversies. Leonardo’s few extant paintings test the limits of the system and require corroborative techniques of testing and analysis.