In light of the recent (digital) uncovering of the Mona Lisa I thought I'd draw attention to a work of similar brilliance.

The sketch above is from Peter Paul Rubens "after" Leonardo's work. It's somewhat dubious whether Rubens sketched it from Leonardo's work itself though. Either way, there's enough evidence in Leonardo's sketches to make the appropriate connections. It's clear that even if Leonardo didn't have that exact composition in mind, he could have easily achieved it. Which is not to diminish Rubens's skill.

The intensity of expression and the surety of handling is obvious in the drawing. Uncovering Leonardo's actual finished work may be a holy grail for some historians, but I think Rubens did a satisfying job of capturing the image.

A subtely in the work which may be missed at first glance is the structure. The hind ends of the horses in the foreground parallel the lance, griped by the rider on the left, followed by the rider in the center and apparently broken by the rider on the right. The broken part on the right then carries the viewer's gaze down to the figures on the ground framed by the two horses. It's a challenge to fit so many figures in a composition, all involved in conflict, but it's eloquently achieved in this work.