Da Vinci

In 2017, a painting of Jesus Christ by Leonardo da Vinci, named "Salvatore Mundi" was sold in an auction for $450 million (RM1.8 billion). There was intense speculation on the buyer's identity after it was known that an anonymous buyer has bought the painting. It is now known that the painting is kept in the newly opened Louvre Abu Dhabi. It was after all the Arabs who are prepared to pay such a mind-boggling and colossal price!

Salvatore Mundi sold for a whopping 
RM1.8 Billion.
Courtesy from web site.

On 16 May, I had a chance to visit his birthplace, Casa Natale di Leonardo in Vinci, Tuscany. Our farm stay is less than 5Km away from Casa Natale di Leonardo (the birthplace of Leonardo). The trip to Tuscany would have been incomplete if we had not made Da Vinci's birthplace one of our destinations. 

Vinci in Tuscany would have been just an obscure little town had Leonardo not been born there. Anyone can be named Leonardo. But there is just this one and only Leonardo from Vinci that everyone is familiar with. Leonardo and da Vinci are so intertwined that it is "da Vinci" rather than Leonardo that would unmistakably lead you to think of this iconic individual. 

As I discover later, Vinci is now named after so many things - streets, squares, parks, airport, schools, colleges etc. There is even a crater in the moon named "da Vinci". 

Da Vinci, a genius, born and  raised in a typical 
modest environment. 

Coat-of-Arms of the Da Vinci family.

We caught a glimpse of the little town of Vinci which is just 2Km southwest of the birthplace of Leonardo.

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Late afternoon of the next day on 17 May, on the way back to our farm stay after visiting Pisa and San Miniato, we made a detour to Museo Leonardo da Vinci (Leonardo da Vinci Museum) in Vinci town itself. This is a place where replicas of Leonardo da Vinci's many inventions are displayed - machines for war, hoists, mechanical devices etc. 

To me, the paintings of "The Last Supper" and "Mona Lisa" somehow almost always lead us to think of Da Vinci. To me, he was visualized more as an artist than an inventor all along. I was surprised to see in the museum such large collection of exhibits all attributed to him! Leonardo da Vinci is undoubtedly a genius, he was indeed a man with a mind way ahead of his time.

Vinci town viewed from museum roof top.