Leonardo's Vitruvian Man loan to Louvre sparks Italian legal debate

The loan of Leonardo da Vinci's Vitruvian Man from the Gallerie dell'Accademia in Venice to the Louvre's Leonardo exhibition has ignited a controversy over Italy's cultural heritage export laws. Italia Nostra, an Italian cultural association, fought to prevent the drawing's temporary export, citing Article 66 of Legislative Decree 42/2004. The Regional Administrative Tribunal of Veneto initially suspended the loan on October 8, 2019, but revoked the suspension on October 16, 2019, allowing the transfer. The tribunal ruled that the drawing does not constitute the 'principal core' of the museum's collection, thus not violating the law's prohibition on exporting works that form the main foundation of a museum section. Antonio Natali, former director of the Uffizi, criticizes this interpretation, arguing that the law is being circumvented. He questions why the Uffizi's drawing 8P, a 1473 landscape by Leonardo, was also loaned to the same exhibition, suggesting that the law is being ignored or reinterpreted arbitrarily. Natali calls for either a clear explanation of what constitutes a 'principal core' or an honest admission that the Minister decides loans on a case-by-case basis, bypassing the law. The article highlights the tension between cultural diplomacy and heritage protection in Italy.