The Notebooks of Leonardo Da Vinci: Volume I and II

AUTHOR: The estate of the Italian Renaissance artist Leonardo da Vinci (1452–1519), painter, sculptor, architect, anatomist, engineer and natural philosopher, included an extensive collection of handwritten documents in the form of drawings and notes by the artist. Even as a young artist, Leonardo began to record his sketches and designs, as well as ideas and thoughts, in bound sketchbooks and notebooks. It is reported that he always carried such a book on his belt. The contents of the notebooks are predominantly thematically unorganized and show the extraordinary range of Leonardo’s interests. In addition to mundane and everyday notes, such as grocery shopping lists and debtors’ lists, there are remarks and contributions on art and painting, mechanics, geometry and astronomy, water and water management, rock and mountain formation, air and light, biology and anatomy, technology, weaponry, and architecture, often even on the same sheet. Leonardo usually wrote the texts in his characteristic mirror writing. Since Leonardo was left-handed and wrote and drew with his left hand, it is likely that it was easier for him to write from right to left. It is also possible that he chose the mirror writing for reasons of secrecy and thus wanted to make it difficult for unwanted readers to grasp the texts even by cursory reading. Due to the enormous variety of topics in his written works, Leonardo da Vinci is considered the epitome of the universal man and universal genius. It is assumed that da Vinci intended to write an encyclopedia that would bring together the knowledge of his time. However, none of his written works were published during his lifetime. Leonardo da Vinci left more than 6,000 sheets to posterity. It is estimated that 25% to 80% of Leonardo’s written legacy may have been lost. TRANSLATOR: Jean Paul Richter (1847–1937) was a German art historian. He was best known for his work on the notebooks of Leonardo da Vinci. Richter’s editorial work on Leonardo da Vinci’s manuscripts became fundamental to the scholarly study of the texts. They were first published in two volumes in 1883 (with 532 drawings). Jean Paul Richter became the discoverer of the author Leonardo da Vinci, whose literary significance was mostly unknown to the professional public at the end of the 19th century. READER: “Holy gods. Read this. READ IT. Da Vinci was a bloody genius.” “Wow, this was an awesome collection of notes. Makes one appreciate Da Vinci’s genius more. He had a lot of interesting insights not only on art but also in war and politics, human and animal behaviour as well as some fascinating and humorous anecdotes. His mind was simply amazing, his grasp on almost everything makes it seem he can almost predict the future. Totally worth reading.” Read more