 The reworked fresco has been seen as " classicizing " the image of the condottieri , with the terra verde technique giving the conceit of an equestrian bronze statue . The horse 's proportions are based loosely upon those prescribed by Alberti in De <unk> <unk> , which in turn is based upon the anonymous <unk> del Cavallo <unk> ; however , in many ways the horse departs radically from Alberti 's ideal of a harmonious and " lithe " creature in the style of <unk> d 'Este 's monument to Niccolò III d 'Este , Arco del Cavallo in Ferrara . Furthermore , Uccello 's perspective in the Hawkwood monument openly flaunted Alberti 's conception of perspective as demarcated in De Pictura ( 1435 , translated into Italian as Della <unk> in 1436 ) : the vanishing point is at the eye @-@ level of the spectator rather than within the field of the fresco , for example . Alberti 's De re <unk> also objected to statues of soldiers and / or lay burials in churches . Although the fresco is often called " monochrome " , its background is dark red , the horse and tomb are accented in red , black , white , and orange . The Trompe @-@ l 'œil perspective from the base , the chiaroscuro relief @-@ effect of the horse and the rider , and lighting from the left are similar to Masaccio 's Holy Trinity . The connection to Masaccio is so strong ( or so often reported ) that Francesco Albertini actually attributed the work to <unk> in 1510 . However , Uccello 's fresco has two viewpoints : the horse and rider are painted as if on level with the spectator , and the cenotaph is seen as if from below . 
