Copyright Question on Leonardo da Vinci's "Last Supper"?

Question

I want to use Leonardo da Vinci's "Last Supper" for a home made birthday card, and I am wanting to draw stuff on top of it. Does anyone know somewhere I can look up the copyright for the painting to find out if I am aloud to do that?

Answer 1

You would look up Italian copyright law, only to discover that it has only existed since 1941 and that the rights of authors (i.e., painters) last for 70 years after their death. Find out when LdV died, add 70 years and see if there is any copyright on ANY of his works.

Since the 1880s, Italian copyright was administered by Società Italiana degli Autori ed Editori
(Italian Society of Authors and Publishers) - S.I.A.E., which became a quasi-government commission in the 1930s. 

Under USA law, nothing published prior to 1923 has any copyright. 17 USC 301.