“All knowledge which ends in words will die as quickly as it came to life, with the exception of the written word: which is its mechanical part.” A fascinating collection of writings from the great polymath of the Italian Renaissance, Leonardo da Vinci. There are sections covering the great man's thoughts on life, art and science. Maurice Baring trawled the available manuscripts to distil da Vinci's writings on these subjects into a single, accessible tome, which will be of interest to students of da Vinci, the Renaissance and the history of both art and science. “Some most interesting instances of Leonardo’s keen and inquisitive observation. The eye fascinated Leonardo. He observes it acutely under many conditions…The remarkable restlessness of a creative mind that could not choose but employ itself in investigation and inquiry. Of course he insists on being guilty of the great forensic sin of proving too much. But what a busy head! This is a book which on one who has wondered at the smile of the Mona Lisa will fail to find of great interest; for in it is set down, quite simply for the most part, the personality of an uncommon thinker.” -The International Studio, Volume 31, March, 1907 Introduction I. Thoughts on Life II. Thoughts on Art III. Thoughts on Science IV. Bibliographical Note V. Table of References