Leonardo da Vinci

Death of Leonardo da Vinci~2nd May 1519

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While Leonardo da Vinci is best known as an artist, he was also a scientist and an inventor.

Leonardo da Vinci conducted dozens of carefully thought out experiments, and created futuristic inventions that were groundbreaking for the time.

Although da Vinci was one of the greatest painters of the Italian Renaissance, he left only a handful of completed paintings.

One of these, is the world's most famous artwork, the Mona Lisa.

She draws thousands of visitors to the Louvre Museum each day, many of whom are compelled by the sitter's mysterious gaze and enigmatic smile.

Leonardo da Vinci, properly named Leonardo di ser Piero da Vinci, was born on 15th April 1452 in, or close to, the town of Vinci, 20 miles from Florence.

He was born out of wedlock to Piero da Vinci and Caterina di Meo Lippi.

Very little is known about Leonardo's childhood.

Tax records indicate that by at least 1457 he lived in the household of his paternal grandfather, Antonio da Vinci, but it is possible that he spent the years before that, in the care of his mother.

Around the age of 14, Leonardo became a garzone (studio boy) in the workshop of Andrea del Verrocchio, who was the leading Florentine painter and sculptor of his time.

By 1472, at the age of 20, Leonardo qualified as a master in the Guild of St Luke~the guild of artists and doctors of medicine.

Leonardo worked in Milan from 1482 until 1499, and in 1500, Leonardo left Milan for Venice.

In Venice, Leonardo was employed as a military architect and engineer, devising methods to defend the city from naval attack.

In 1502, Leonardo entered the service of Ceasare Borgia acting as a military architect and engineer and travelling throughout Italy with him.

Leonardo left Borgia's service and returned to Florence by early 1503.

Here he began working on a portrait of Lisa del Giocondo, the model for the Mona Lisa, which he would continue to work on in his twilight years.

He continued to work at some capacity until eventually becoming ill and bedridden for several months.

Leonardo died at Clos Lucé on 2nd May 1519 at the age of 67, possibly of a stroke.

Francis I had become a close friend of Leonardo's and there is reports that the king held Leonardo's head in his arms as he died.

Leonardo's remains were interred in the Collegiate Church of Saint Florentin, at the Château d'Amboise.

Despite the thousands of pages Leonardo left in notebooks and manuscripts, he scarcely made reference to his personal life.

Leonardo had many notable friends, but appears to have had no close relationships with women, except for his friendship with Cecilia Gallerani and sisters, Beatrice and Isabella Este.

Beyond friendship, Leonardo kept his private life secret.

His sexuality has been the subject of satire, analysis, and speculation.

Court records of 1476, when he was aged twenty-four, show that Leonardo and three other young men were charged with sodomy, in an incident involving a well-known male prostitute.

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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leonardo_da_Vinci

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https://ko-fi.com/thetudorintruders

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Leonardo da Vinci's tomb~The Collegiate Church of Saint Florentin, at the Château d'Amboise.