May 31, 2014
The Biblioteca Ambrosiana (named after St. Ambrose, the
patron saint of Milan) was founded by Cardinal Federico Borromeo in 1609. It
was the second public library in the world (the Bodlean at Oxford University
was the first).
The Codex has had an interesting history in and of itself.
Da Vinci died in France but willed the notebooks to his favorite pupil, who
brought the books back to Italy.
Napoleon stole them in the late 1700s, but the Austrians, when they took
over Milan, ordered them returned to the Ambrosian Library. Other parts of
Leonardo’s notebooks are owned by Bill Gates and the British Royal family.
The Biblioteca Ambrosiana (named after St. Ambrose, the
patron saint of Milan) was founded by Cardinal Federico Borromeo in 1609. It
was the second public library in the world (the Bodlean at Oxford University
was the first).
The Codex Atlanticus consists of 1119 sheets in 12 volumes of
notes and drawings that Da Vinci made between 1478 and 1519. The subjects cover
mathematics, astronomy, parachutes, mechanical devices, and hydraulic pumps,
among others. The exhibit in the Library rotates every three months. At this
time the theme was musical instruments. Da Vinci was fairly obsessive in his note
taking and musings. The depth and breadth of his work is all the more amazing
when you consider that he had no formal education due to the fact that he was
the illegitimate child of a notary and a farm girl.
The Codex has had an interesting history in and of itself.
Da Vinci died in France but willed the notebooks to his favorite pupil, who
brought the books back to Italy.
Napoleon stole them in the late 1700s, but the Austrians, when they took
over Milan, ordered them returned to the Ambrosian Library. Other parts of
Leonardo’s notebooks are owned by Bill Gates and the British Royal family.
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