Da Vinci’s Accomplishments

Leonardo da Vinci is one of the most famous artists the world has ever known, but he is also celebrated for his many inventions. His detailed notebooks contain several sketches and drawings. These are accompanied by odd-looking handwriting (words written backward to confuse the uninvited reader). His notebooks outlined plans for ideas that were four centuries ahead of their time. His inventions ranged from flying machines to weapons to a device for roasting pigs. In intricate drawings, Leonardo showed how alarm clocks, parachutes, diving suits, and submarines might be constructed. He created blueprints for the chain drive used on bicycles today. Other designs were for machines that could make coins, screws, cloth, and rope. Most of his ideas were never actually built. However, history has shown that he was definitely a man ahead of his time.

Da Vinci’s Life

Leonardo da Vinci was born on April 15, 1452, in a hilltop city called Vinci. He was raised by his stepmother. His mother, Caterina, had been unable to bring a dowry to the marriage, so his father, Ser Piero da Vinci, married a young woman of great wealth. As a child, Leonardo was fascinated with nature. He liked to study birds as he walked through the Tuscan hills near his home. Later in life, he would often buy caged birds just so he could free them. He had a great respect for all living creatures.

By the age of 10, Leonardo was living with his family in Florence, Italy. Here, he was a student in artist Verrocchio’s studio, where he studied for the next 10 years. It was during his stay in Milan that he painted The Last Supper and the Mona Lisa. Unable to continue making a living there, Leonardo began moving from place to place. He worked as an engineer and mapmaker for the Pope. He also worked as an engineer for the French governors of Milan and as a member of the papal court.

Finally, in 1516, the king of France, Francis I, invited Leonardo to live there. Leonardo started a new life. As the king’s official painter and architect, Leonardo planned a new castle for Francis I and oversaw its construction. He also designed a network of canals that would be installed some 300 years later.

When Leonardo da Vinci died on May 2, 1519, the world lost a great man. However, his many ideas and inventions would bring him new life when they were rediscovered by Napoleon some 200 years later.

達文西的成就

李奧納多•達文西是舉世聞名的藝術家之一，也以許多項發明為人稱頌。他的筆記本詳細記錄了許多草圖和素描，一旁寫有看起來很奇怪的書寫（這些字被反過來寫，用來混淆那些不請自讀的人）。他的筆記本扼要地描繪一些計劃，這些計劃的概念比當時還先進了四百年的時間。他的發明從飛行器到武器，甚至連烤豬的器具都有。在複雜精細的繪圖中，達文西呈現了鬧鐘、降落傘、潛水衣和潛水艇的製造方法，他還畫了現在腳踏車所使用的鍊條藍圖。其他的設計包含能製造硬幣、螺絲起子、布料、繩子的各種機器。他大多數的想法並沒有實際製作出來，但是歷史證明他肯定是超越當時年代的一個人。

達文西的一生

李奧納多•達文西在1452年的4月15日出生於山頂上一個名為文西的城鎮，由他的繼母帶大。因為他的母親卡特麗娜沒有任何嫁妝，所以他的父親舍•皮耶羅•達文西就娶了另外一位有錢的年輕女子。在孩童時期，達文西非常迷戀大自然，他喜歡在家附近的托斯卡尼山區散步，研究鳥類。往後，他常會買一些籠中鳥放生。他對所有的生物都存著莫大的敬意。

十歲時，達文西和家人住在義大利佛羅倫斯，他是藝術家維洛奇歐工作室裡的學生。此後十年，他都在那裡學習，而最後的晚餐和蒙娜麗莎兩幅畫則是他在米蘭期間的作品。因為在米蘭無法維持生計，所以他開始到處搬來搬去，他當過教宗的工程師和地圖繪製員，也擔任過當時在米蘭的法國總督的工程師和羅馬法庭成員。

最後在1516年，法國國王法蘭西斯一世邀請達文西住在那裡，達文西便在那開始了新生活。身為國王的畫師和建築師，他為法蘭西斯一世設計了一座城堡，並且監督整個建造工程。他還設計了一套在三百多年後實施的運河網絡系統。

李奧納多•達文西在1519年5月2日逝世，世界失去了一名偉人。但他許多想法與發明在兩百多年後被拿破崙發現，又為他帶來了新生。