Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519) was the archetypical Renaissance Man, whose insatiable curiosity and exceptional talents made him one of history's most remarkable figures.
Born in Vinci, Tuscany, he excelled as a painter, sculptor, cartographer, geologist, architect, inventor, musician, scientist, engineer, and anatomist. His masterpieces include the Mona Lisa and The Last Supper, while his scientific notebooks reveal groundbreaking studies in anatomy, engineering, and flight.
Leonardo designed flying machines, tanks, and hydraulic systems centuries before their time. His ability to seamlessly blend art and science, combined with his meticulous observation of nature, epitomizes the Renaissance ideal of the universal genius.
“A man is worthy of praise or blame solely on account of those actions which lie within his power to do or not to do.”
Leonardo da Vinci (verified)
“Wisdom is the daughter of experience.”
— Leonardo da Vinci (verified)“To speak well of a base man is much the same as speaking ill of a good man.”
— Leonardo da Vinci (verified)“Necessity is the mistress and guide of nature.”
— Leonardo da Vinci (verified)“All our knowledge has its origin in our perceptions.”
— Leonardo da Vinci (verified)“He who thinks little, errs much.”
— Leonardo da Vinci (verified)“Threats alone are the weapons of the threatened man.”
— Leonardo da Vinci (verified)“Just as iron rusts unless it is used, and water putrifies or, in cold, turns to ice, so our intellect spoils unless it is kept in use.”
— Leonardo da Vinci (verified)“Truth was the only daughter of Time.”
— Leonardo da Vinci (verified)“As a well-spent day brings happy sleep, so a life well used brings happy death.”
— Leonardo da Vinci (verified)More quotes by Leonardo da Vinci →
Codex Atlanticus (1478-1519)
The Codex Atlanticus is Leonardo da Vinci’s largest collection of papers, containing over 1,100 pages of drawings, notes, and designs spanning engineering, architecture, military inventions, anatomy, and flight studies, created between approximately 1478-1519 and housed in Milan’s Ambrosiana Library.
Codex Arundel (1480-1518)
The Codex Arundel is a collection of Leonardo da Vinci’s papers containing studies on water flow, hydraulics, geometry, and mechanics, dating from around 1480-1518. Named after the Earl of Arundel who once owned it, it’s now held in the British Library in London.
Codex Forster (1487-1505)
The Codex Forster consists of five small notebooks by Leonardo da Vinci containing studies on hydraulics, geometry, architecture, and mechanical devices, dating from around 1487-1505. Named after collector John Forster, these manuscripts are housed in the Victoria and Albert Museum in London.
Vitruvian Man (1490)
The Vitruvian Man is Leonardo da Vinci’s famous drawing from around 1490 showing a nude male figure in two superimposed positions within a circle and square. It illustrates the ideal human proportions described by ancient Roman architect Vitruvius, symbolizing the harmony between humanity and the universe.
The Last Supper (1495-1498)
The Last Supper is Leonardo da Vinci's monumental fresco depicting Christ’s final meal with his disciples, painted 1495-1498 on the wall of Santa Maria delle Grazie monastery in Milan. Famous for its psychological drama and innovative perspective, it captures the moment Jesus announces his betrayal.
Mona Lisa (1503-1519)
The Mona Lisa is Leonardo da Vinci’s iconic portrait of Lisa Gherardini, painted around 1503-1519. Famous for her enigmatic smile and Leonardo’s revolutionary sfumato technique, this Renaissance masterpiece is housed in the Louvre Museum and remains the world’s most recognizable painting.
Codex Leicester (1506-1510)
The Codex Leicester is Leonardo da Vinci’s scientific notebook focusing on astronomy, geology, water flow, and fossils, written around 1506-1510. Named after the Earl of Leicester, it was purchased by Bill Gates in 1994 for $30.8 million, making it the world’s most expensive manuscript.
⭐️ The Notebooks of Leonardo Da Vinci (1888)
The Notebooks of Leonardo da Vinci, translated by Jean Paul Richter, is a thematic anthology of Leonardo’s writings on art, science, anatomy, engineering, and philosophy—revealing the genius’s insights, observations, and inventions through his own reflective and analytical prose.
Louis Pasteur Tony Hoare Napoleon Bonaparte Richard Feynman Bill Gates