1452–1519, Italian painter, sculptor, architect, musician, engineer, mathematician, and scientist.
Leonardo da Vinci
British
/ ˌliːəˈnɑːdəʊ də ˈvɪntʃɪ, ˌliːənɑːˈdɛsk /
noun
1452–1519, Italian painter, sculptor, architect, and engineer: the most versatile talent of the Italian Renaissance. His most famous paintings include The Virgin of the Rocks (1483–85), the Mona Lisa (or La Gioconda, 1503), and the Last Supper (?1495–97). His numerous drawings, combining scientific precision in observation with intense imaginative power, reflect the breadth of his interests, which ranged over biology, physiology, hydraulics, and aeronautics. He invented the first armoured tank and foresaw the invention of aircraft and submarines
Italian artist, scientist, and inventor whose scientific insights were far ahead of their time. He investigated anatomy, geology, botany, hydraulics, optics, mathematics, meteorology, and mechanics. He also drew up designs for the first workable helicopter, parachute, and bicycle, all of which were eventually constructed centuries after his death using modern materials and technology.
Leonardo da Vinci
Cultural
An Italian artist, scientist, and inventor of the late fifteenth and early sixteenth centuries. His wide range of interests and abilities makes him a grand example of a “Renaissance man.” Leonardo painted the Mona Lisa and The Last Supper. His drawings include brilliant studies of the human body and of natural objects. Some of his sketches anticipate modern inventions such as the airplane and the tank.
For Pontormo, who studied with Leonardo da Vinci and was influenced by Michelangelo and Dürer, it’s the painting that shows him stylistically emancipated from those giants.
The most expensive painting ever sold at auction remains the "Salvator Mundi," attributed to Leonardo da Vinci, which was bought for $450 million in 2017.