Da Vinci’s Cat

Imagine being on a European tour. Then imagine stopping off in Italy and walking through Leonardo Da Vince’s house, all while considering all the innovative things he invented or crazy things he thought up. Imagine trying to step into his shoes and seeing it as home, as where this genius walked and ate…and slept. Because the picture I used was Leonardo’s bed, and yes, there was a cat curled up on it when my niece captured it with her camera. Was he an ordinary man living an ordinary life? Was he an ordinary man living an extraordinary life? Or was he an extraordinary man living an extraordinary life? Or an extraordinary man living an ordinary life? We will delve into Leo for a moment. (I must say “wow” first! And I will try and keep it short!)

Leo was a polymath: “a person of wide knowledge or learning.” His brain and hands went in tons of different directions: art, anatomy, flying machines, weapons, and more. Leonardo gave us the Mona Lisa and The Last Supper and many more pieces of art. But his artistic brain also gave us science. He drew over a thousand drawings, which contributed to many fields. Some of his ideas, or additions to others’ ideas, are the basis for many things in our modern lives. For instance, his self-propelled cart is considered a precursor for the automobile, and his Helical Air Screw is considered the basis for our helicopters. Airplanes, though drawn by others as well during that time, began as his simplistic Ornithopters (membrane-covered flapping wings). He created a robot knight, a Mechanical lion, and a portable self-supporting wooden bridge for armies to cross rivers. He also imagined the first 360-degree tank (Armoured Fighting Vehicle – it looked like the proverbial spaceship), the ‘giant crossbow,’ which he figured would scare the enemy away (whether or not it would work was another story), and other military weapons, including diving suits to allow soldiers to attack the enemy from the water. That may have been difficult however as breathing was made possible by air tanks that floated on the water’s surface. Perhaps at night…? (It was clearly a time of wars.)

Was Leonardo A.D.D., a type “A” personality, a genius, or just a regular guy who loved to learn and think and explore all that he found (or all of the above)? He got some things wrong (who wouldn’t when they are creating new things), but his drawings and ideas opened up the world of invention. And yet…The cat on the bed. It reminds us that we are all human, all capable of amazing things, all able to love and live and be regular on whatever level of life we live. Let's live it well.

History Hit, 10 of Leonardo da Vinci’s Most Important Inventions by Jon Bauckham

https://www.historyhit.com/ ; Wikipedia

A cat on Da Vinci's bed. Photo by Joy C. Schaefer, Chateau du Clos Luce, May 2023 

vinci-closluce.com