Oak (Quercus robur) and dyer's greenweed (Genista tinctoria)
c.1505-10RCIN 912422
Several of Leonardo’s botanical drawings are executed in an unusual technique of red chalk on paper with an orange-red coating. In this remarkably bold study of a sprig of oak, the dense shading gives the drawing a sense of life not found in the work of any contemporary. To the left is a more delicate study of dyer’s greenweed.