Found 7,000 photographic plates depicting Leonardo da Vinci's manuscripts

From the archives of the Vinci Commission, now housed at the Galileo Museum of Science in Florence, more than 7,000 glass photographic plates of Leonardo da Vinci’s manuscripts, made in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, are re-emerging. This was announced during the presentation of the major exhibition The Water Microscope of Nature. The Leicester Codex of Leonardo da Vinci, welcomed at the Uffizi (we told you about it here, while here you will find our preview), was the curator of the same exhibition, Paolo Galluzzi, who explained, "This is a discovery of great importance, both for the history of photography and for the studies dedicated to the genius of Vinci. These plates, in fact, made more than a century ago, offer important information about the changes in the state of conservation of the codices he wrote, including the Leicester Codex, that have taken place in the time from their creation to the present."

The plates are already the focus of research: their systematic and exhaustive reconnaissance has been initiated, the digital acquisition of the documents is already at an advanced stage, and soon their ultra-high-definition reproductions will be made available to scholars on the Internet, “becoming fundamental tools of research on Leonardo,” Galluzzi added. As early as next year, the first results of investigations into them could be made public.
Meanwhile, the Gallery, in addition to the exhibition dedicated to the Leicester Codex, has other initiatives in store, spread throughout Tuscany to pay tribute to the great artist and scientist. In Leonardo’s hometown of Vinci, the panel with his first landscape (“disputed” between Tuscany and Umbria, as it is still a matter of debate whether the work depicts a view of the Valdarno hills or a view of Umbrian lands) will be on display.

In addition, the Doria panel, depicting the central part of the lost mural masterpiece, the Battle of Anghiari, painted in the 1500s by an unknown author, which is on display in Poppi until January, will move to Anghiari itself.

Uffizi Director Eike Schmidt commented, “So we invite everyone not only to come and see the Leicester Codex at the Uffizi, but also to spend some time next year on these additional exhibitions that we will be taking out of Florence.”

Pictured: a plate of the Leicester Codex.

Found 7,000 photographic plates depicting Leonardo da Vinci's manuscripts

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