We revere LeonarÂdo da VinÂci for his indusÂtry, but even more so for his imagÂiÂnaÂtion. Most of us would enviÂsion ourÂselves, had we lived in the late 15th or earÂly 16th cenÂtuÂry, being perÂfectÂly conÂtent with havÂing paintÂed the Mona Lisa. But LeonarÂdo had designs on a host of othÂer domains as well, most of them not strictÂly artisÂtic. His venÂtures into sciÂence and engiÂneerÂing made him the archeÂtypÂal polyÂmath “RenaisÂsance man,” but he was also a man before his time: most of the invenÂtions he came up with and docÂuÂmentÂed in his writÂings couldÂn’t have been built when he lived.
Over the past six cenÂturies, howÂevÂer techÂnoÂlogÂiÂcal develÂopÂments have turned more and more of LeonarÂdo’s machines posÂsiÂble — or at least conÂceivÂable to the non-visionÂary. Take, for instance, the bridge only put sucÂcessÂfulÂly to the test when MIT researchers 3D-printÂed it in 2019.
Alas, howÂevÂer advanced our mateÂriÂals in the 21st cenÂtuÂry, they have yet to prove equal to the ornithopter, a rig meant to bestow upon man the powÂer of flight by givÂing him a pair of birdÂlike wings. But you can see it in action in the short video at the top of this post, the first in a series called “Da VinÂci Reborn.”
ProÂduced by the 3D softÂware-makÂer DasÂsault SysÂtèmes, these videos reveal the inner workÂings of LeonarÂdo’s invenÂtions, built and unbuilt. Apart from his fanÂciÂful ornithopter, they realÂisÂtiÂcalÂly renÂder his odomeÂter, self-cenÂterÂing drill, aerÂiÂal screw, and self-supÂportÂing bridge (which, as we’ve preÂviÂousÂly feaÂtured here on Open CulÂture, you can actuÂalÂly build yourÂself). It’s one thing to see these machines diaÂgrammed and hear them explained, but quite anothÂer to witÂness them put into comÂputÂer-genÂerÂatÂed action.
Even as these videos help us underÂstand how LeonarÂdo’s ingeÂnious creÂations worked, they remind us that LeonarÂdo himÂself had to invent them withÂout the benÂeÂfit of comÂputÂer-aidÂed design — with litÂtle more, in fact, than pen, paper, and the RenaisÂsance-era tools at hand. For him, when the self-cenÂterÂing drill bored straight through a log or the aerÂiÂal screw took to the air, they did so only in his imagÂiÂnaÂtion. It was only there that he could test, refine, and reassemÂble the mechÂaÂnisms that togethÂer conÂstiÂtutÂed many of the invenÂtions that still impress us today.
It must be someÂthing like stepÂping into LeonarÂdo’s mind, then, to expeÂriÂence the DasÂsault-designed Da VinÂci CasÂtle playÂground, which virÂtuÂalÂly places these invenÂtions and othÂers on the lawn in front of the Château du Clos LucĂ©. It was there that the great RenaisÂsance man came to the end of his life in 1619, havÂing entered the serÂvice of King FranÂcis I’s serÂvice after the French monarch recapÂtured Milan four years earÂliÂer. LeonarÂdo himÂself would sureÂly appreÂciÂate this geoÂgraphÂiÂcal touch — and even more so, the fact that humanÂiÂty is still bringÂing such high techÂnolÂoÂgy to bear on the project of underÂstandÂing his work.
RelatÂed ConÂtent:
LeonarÂdo da VinÂci Draws Designs of Future War Machines: Tanks, Machine Guns & More
Based in Seoul, ColÂin MarÂshall writes and broadÂcasts on cities, lanÂguage, and culÂture. His projects include the SubÂstack newsletÂter Books on Cities, the book The StateÂless City: a Walk through 21st-CenÂtuÂry Los AngeÂles and the video series The City in CinÂeÂma. FolÂlow him on TwitÂter at @colinmarshall or on FaceÂbook.
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