## TL;DR

Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519) was the quintessential Renaissance Man — painter (Mona Lisa, The Last Supper), anatomist (dissected 30+ corpses), engineer (flying machines, war engines), scientist (optics, hydraulics), and inventor. His notebooks (7,200+ surviving pages) combine art and science — mirror writing, detailed observations, innovative designs.

## Core Explanation

Mona Lisa (1503-19): sfumato technique, ambiguous smile — most famous painting in history. Last Supper (1498): innovative composition, deteriorating due to experimental technique. Vitruvian Man: ideal human proportions in circle/square. Anatomical drawings: more accurate than any before, from personal dissection. Helicopter/tank designs: centuries ahead. Notebooks: mirror-script (left-handed), observation + imagination. 'Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.'

## Further Reading

- [Leonardo da Vinci (Walter Isaacson)](https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Leonardo-da-Vinci/Walter-Isaacson/9781501139161)