Can you take photos of the Last Supper?

Assume not, and treat whatever the staff say at the door as the rule. I am not going to print a photography policy here as a fact, because it is precisely the kind of thing that changes and there is no version of it worth being wrong about. What I can tell you is what governs it: the refectory is climate-controlled, reached through sealed doors, and you are one of up to forty people on a fifteen-minute slot with another group waiting. Flash and tripods are the obvious no. Ask at check-in, do what you are told inside, and do not spend your quarter of an hour negotiating.

The ruleWhatever staff say at the door

Ask atCheck-in, before the slot

Flash and tripodsTreat as out

RoomClimate-controlled

Your slot15 minutes, max 40

BagsHandled before entry

The better argument, whatever the rule is

You have fifteen minutes with something that photographs badly and reproduces everywhere. A phone held up for three of those minutes costs you a fifth of the visit and gets you an image worse than any of the thousands already published. I have watched people spend the entire slot behind a screen and leave without having looked at the wall with their own eyes. If you take one piece of advice from this site, take that one — and read what you actually see beforehand so you know where to point your attention instead.

What works

The church and the wider complex are a different proposition from the refectory
Staff give the instruction clearly at check-in, so you will not be guessing
Nothing you photograph will beat the published images of the mural

Worth knowing

Flash and tripods should be assumed out in a climate-controlled room
Time spent filming comes out of fifteen minutes, not out of nowhere
Rules can change, so the page you read months earlier is not the authority

Insider tip

Ask the question at check-in rather than inside. Sorting it out before the doors open is the difference between knowing where you stand and losing two minutes of the slot to a conversation with a member of staff.

A note about our own photographs

None of the pictures on this site shows the mural. They are the church, the tribune, the cloister and the city, and that is deliberate. If you want to study the painting itself before you go, use a published reproduction, then spend the fifteen minutes on the room — the reasons that is the better trade are on the worth-it page.

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Frequently asked questions

Are photos allowed in the Last Supper refectory?

Treat the instruction given at check-in as the rule, and assume flash and tripods are out. The room is climate-controlled and your slot is fifteen minutes, so this is not something to argue about inside.

Can I film during the visit?

Ask before you go in. Whatever the answer, filming spends part of a fifteen-minute slot you cannot extend — see how long the visit is.

Why are there no photos of the painting on this site?

Because our own images are of the church, the tribune, the cloister and the city, and none of them shows the mural. What is on the wall is described instead on what you actually see.