The Da Vinci Con: 
    Fact and Fiction in The Da Vinci Code

It's Just a Novel (Movie)

2. Story of The Da Vinci Code: Historical Secret

3. Leonardo’s Last Supper 

4. Derivation of 'Holy Grail'

5. Mary Magdalene in the Bible

6. Priory of Sion

6a. Opus Dei

7. Questions of Jesus’s True Identity

8. Non-Christian Sources

9. Christian Sources: Biblical Texts

10. Other Apostolic Texts

11. St. Ignatius  of Antioch – AD 110

12. "Alternate" Gospels: Gospel of Peter (c. AD 130)

13. St. Justin, Martyr – AD 151

14. St. Irenaeus of Lyon – AD189

15. "Alternate" Christianities

16. Gnostic Scriptures

17. The ‘Muratorian’ Canon – c. AD 200

18. Constantine

19. Council of Nicaea - AD 325

20. St. Eusebius, Bishop of Caesarea (c. AD 330)

21. Constantine’s Bibles

22. Codex Sinaiticus

23. Closing the Canon

24. Philosophical Issues: Diversity of Christianities

25. Philosophical Issues: Subjectivism of Belief

26. Theological Issue: Was Jesus married?

27. Other Historical Claims

DVC: Leonardo’s Last Supper shows Mary Magdalene as the Holy Grail

The fresco is unusual in that it does not show a chalice at the Last Supper (p. 236).

There is no cup because the figure to right of Christ is female, and in fact is Mary Magdalene the real vessel of Christ’s blood [Holy Grail] (p. 243).

Leonardo’s Last Supper: Truth

The painting depicts a scene from the Gospel of John (12:21-30) when Jesus announces that one of his disciples will betray him, and Peter whispers to John to ask Jesus who it is.

This Gospel does not identify the Last Supper as Jesus’ celebration of the Jewish Passover, or the institution of the Eucharist. Therefore, Leonardo does not show a central cup.

Franciabigio (1514)

Dominico Ghirlandaio (1480)

The lack of a chalice and the representation of the Apostle John as young and beautiful (effeminate) was common in Florentine Renaissance depictions of the Last Supper.

(NB, Leonardo was born near Florence and trained as an artist there; he painted his famous Last Supper, however, in Milan.)

Also Note Well: 

• The only alleged connection between Leonardo da Vinci and Jesus/Mary Magdalene, according to The Da Vinci Code, is the Priory of Sion.  Since this 'secret organization' is not older than 1956, Leonardo could not have been its Grand Master, so all the speculation about hidden messages in the renaissance master's art work is complete fantasy.  In Leonardo's time there just was no Priory of Sion for the artist to be its Grand Master, and so he could not hide their secrets in his art work (nor would there be any reason for him to do so, supposing there were such secrets)!

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