Are you curious to learn some weird and wonderful facts about Leonardo da Vinci?
If so, excellent! You are in exactly the right place my friend…
It’s time to chat about Leonardo da Vinci facts.
Let’s dive right in…
Facts about Leonardo Da Vinci
1 – Leonardo da Vinci was a genius and one of the most famous artists and inventors in history. He could paint, sculpt, draw, invent things and write about his ideas.
2 – His paintings were often done on wood panels or paper with oil paints.
3 – One of his most famous works is Mona Lisa which was painted in 1506-1507. His painting Mona Lisa has been called “the world’s most famous painting.”
Some people think it resembles a woman named Lisa Gherardini who married into the family that owned his house during this time.
4 – The painting is currently hanging at the Louvre Museum in Paris France.
5 – Leonardo da Vinci was born in the year 1452 and died on May 2nd 1519 at age 67 but he left behind many pieces of art that are still admired today.
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6 – In 1508 he sketched plans for a flying machine which are still studied by scientists today.
7 – He painted “The Last Supper” and also created a self-portrait that can be seen at The National Gallery, London.
8 – He didn’t speak until the age of four.
9 – His mother died when he was 15 years old.
10 – Da Vinci also painted many other works including The Virgin of the Rocks, The Adoration of Magi, and Saint John on Patmos.
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11 – His early life consisted mainly of drawing birds and other animals in nature as a way to study anatomy.
He also spent many hours studying the human form by dissecting cadavers that were donated to him by hospitals in Florence.
12 – He completed The Last Supper while working with artist Andrea del Verrocchio.
13 – His last words were “I have offended God and mankind because my work did not reach the quality it should have.”
14 – He is buried in France at Amboise Castle near his birthplace of Chateau d’Amboise.
15 – Da Vinci invented an early form of scissors that he called “shears.”
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16 – His nickname was “The Florentine.”
17 – As a child he created his own alphabet of letters that looked like small drawings of birds and animals.
18 – He had a fascination with water which led him to study hydrodynamics.
19 – One of his inventions was the double hulled boat which could carry more cargo than one single hulled boat.
20 – He also created anatomical sketches based off dissections which are now displayed at The Royal Collection Trust.
Da Vinci’s notebooks included over 10,000 pages worth of notes on subjects such as mechanics, mathematics, architecture, astronomy, anatomy and geology.
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21 – His paintings were all done with oil paint and he used a technique called sfumato to create depth and light.
22 – His father was Ser Piero da Vinci and his mother was Caterina.
23 – He had three sisters – Laudomia (born 1457), Virginia (born 1459) and Ippolita (born 1460).
24 – Some people believe he is buried under an oak tree in Amboise France but there is no proof that this is true.
25 – His scientific investigations ranged from anatomy to geology. He was also interested in astronomy, mathematics, engineering, botany, and zoology
Da Vinci had an interest in other fields like geography – he mapped out the Adriatic Sea as well as areas of France and Italy.
When he was about 16 years old Leonardo went to work with his father and became an apprentice artist.
In 1482 da Vinci created a silver lyre that could be played by touching it with wet fingers.
In 1506, King Francis I of France commissioned da Vinci to create an enormous bronze statue for his palace garden – the “Lion” (Leo) is still there today!
His Mona Lisa painting is worth over $800 million dollars.
The Mona Lisa has been stolen twice.
Da Vinci had an IQ that was estimated to be between 160-190 (which would make him a genius).
He is considered a polymath because he excelled at so many different things.
Da Vinci could speak 9 languages.
Da Vinci’s favorite subject to paint was the human body.
His most famous painting is Mona Lisa which took him 3 years to complete.
One day in 1509, Leonardo went into a rage and destroyed all his paintings that were not yet completed including The Battle of Anghiari but fortunately he couldn’t destroy the one masterpiece that would become known as Mona Lisa.
