神秘档案.docx

神秘档案.docx

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神秘档案

英語文選必讀系列

MysteryFiles:

LeonardodaVinci－天才達文西

He’soneofthemostfamousmulti-taskers

ofalltime.

Theoriginal‘RenaissanceMan’,

anartistandinventor

whoseideasoutstrippedhisownage.

Thetank,thedivingsuit,

thehelicopter.Butlittleknownevidence

hascometolightthatsuggests

adifferentstory-onefarlessrevolutionary

thancommonlybelieved.

Heisveryawareoftheknowledgeofhistime

andhedrawsfromthisknowledge.

Coulditbethatthismedievalsuperstar

wasnot,afterall,

amanaheadofhistime?

Inaninvestigationwhichdelvesinto

theactualtechnologicaladvances

of15th&16thCenturyEurope...

Andusesmoderntoolstopeelbackthelayers

ofthismosticonicpainting,

Weopenthemysteryfiles

onLeonardoDaVinci.

Italyinthe16thCentury.

Oneofthegreatesterasofinnovation

inarts,engineeringandscience

theworldhaseverknown.

Andperhapsitsmostcelebratedfigure

isLeonardodaVinci.

Inthecenturiessincehisdeath,

hehasbeentransformedinto

analmostGod-likesymbol

oftheItalianRennassiance.

RenaissanceHistorianMonicaAzzolini

isexploringDaVinci’selevation

tothehighestrankofItaly’sgreatartists.

Leonardoovertimehasbecomealmostanicon,

sothereisthisromanticidea

oftheRenaissancegenius

andhehasembodiedthatidea.

Soit’sverymuchakindofcreation

ofamyththatrepresentsallthatisgood

abouttheRenaissance.

TheinvestigationintohowLeonardo

earnedhiscultstatusbeginsin1452

inthetownofVinciinTuscany.

Leonardoisbornthebastardson

ofapeasantgirlandarespectednotary.

Yetdespitethesehumblebeginnings

Leonardowillgoontoinfluencethethinking

ofvirtuallyeverypathoflearning.

Butitwasonlylongafterhisdeath

thatthestaggeringextentofideas

anddisciplinesLeonardoturnshistalentsto

becomesclear.//Leonardo’snotebooks

becomeaccessibleforthefirsttime

inthelate19thcentury.

TheGermanscholarJean-PaulRichter

startstranscribingandthentranslates

alargenumberofhisnotebooks.

Andwiththepublicationofhiswork

inthelate19thcentury,

thecontentofhisnotebooks

becomesfinallyavailable

andaccessibletoscholars.

Astoundedbyideasandinventiveness

capturedinhisnotebooks,

thepublicbeginstorevereLeonardo

assomekindofsupernaturalgenius.

TheperceptionofLeonardochanges

becausescholarsrealisethevastamount

ofhisknowledge,thevariety

ofhissubjects,andtherefore

theperceptionofLeonardo

asapolymathdevelops.

Hebeginstobeseenasaman

capableofalmostanything.

Yetexpertsareuncoveringevidence

thatsomeoftheideasinLeonardo’snotebooks

maynotafterallhaveoriginated

inthemindofthegreatmanhimself.

Leonardo’sprecocioustalent

hadinfactbroughthimintodirectcontact

withmanyofthemoversandshakers

oftheRenaissance.

Inthelate15thcentury,

thegreatartpatronLudovicoSforza

seizestheduchyofMilanfromhisnephew.

HetakesoverthefamilyseatinMilan,

theSforzaCastle,and,hires

theleadingartistsandengineerstoadornit.

In1482,Leonardoisinvited

tojoinSforza’sselectcircle.

HestaysattheCastlefor17years.

In1496,LucaPacioli,

theeminentmathematician,

movesintoSforza’scourt.

WhileteachinginMilanhegetstoknowLeonardo

andLeonardolearnsmuchofhismathematics

fromLucaPacioli,sotherewasasortof

relationshipofstudent/pupil.

In1499,theFrenchinvadeItaly

andSforzaistoppledfrompower.

Nowwithoutapatron,LeonardoandPacioli

leaveMilanbutcarryontheircollaboration.

LeonardohimselfthenhelpsPacioli,

heiscreditedwithhavingdrawn

thepolyhedral,thatistosay

thesolidsthatareinoneofPacioli’s

mostdistinguishedworks,

theDivinaProportione,ondivineproportion.

Themathematicalknowledgehesoaksup

whilewithPacioliunderpinsmuchof

theengineeringworkhewilllater

becomerenownedfor.

Andmathsisnottheonlyarea

whereLeonardolearnsfromothers.

Furtherinvestigationsappeartohaveuncovered

theinspirationforsomeofLeonardo’s

famousinventions.

Thedivingsuit,

thetank,

theflyingmachines,coulditbethat

thesefuturisticdesignswerenotconceived

byLeonardodaVinci?

ProfessorPaoloGalluzzi

hasextensivelystudied

Italy’sscientificheritage.

>FromFlorence,heiswellplaced

toinvestigateLeonardo’slinks

tootherengineersoftheRenaissance.

IfwewanttoapproachtherealLeonardo,

thehistoricalLeonardo,

wehavetoputLeonardointocontext.

InthebeginningoftheRenaissance,

thereisaflourishing

oftechnologicaladvancementinSiena.

AhotbedofactivitySienabecomesacentre

ofengineeringinnovation.

Only50kilometresseparatethecities.

Anewmovementemergesthattriesto

combineclassicaltechnology

withthedevelopmentofexperimentaldevices.

MarianoTaccolaisattheforefront

ofthisnewbreedofengineers.

Taccolaisaveryimportantstepinthis

becausehismanuscriptsarefullofimages,

hundredsandhundredsofimagesofmachines.

Itisarevolutioncomparedto

whatwehavebefore.

TheItalianRenaissancetowns

arefilledwithstatuesoftheirillustrious

formerresidentsbutTaccolaissurprisingly

notcelebratedasextensively…

Inspiteoffivesurvivingvolumes

ofthisgroundbreakingartistengineer’swork

servingasrecognitionofhisingenuity.

Andthesimilaritiesbetween

Taccola’sdrawingsandLeonardo’snotebooks

arehardtoignore.Thereisevenafigure

resemblingtheVitruvianman,

albeitcruderthanLeonardo’sfamousdrawing.

Andthereisdocumentaryevidence

thatLeonardosawTaccola’swork.

FrancescodiGiorgio,

anotherprominentSieneseengineer

inheritedallofTaccola’smanuscripts

andbasedsomeofhisworkonthem,

improvingthequalityofdesign

andillustration,justasLeonardo

wouldlaterdowithDiGiorgio’s.

Leonardocertainlyownedatleast

oneofDiGiorgio’smanuscripts.

OnesurvivesfromLeonardo’s

personallibrarythatstillhas

Leonardo’sownnotesinthemargins.

Ihavefoundonlyoneevidence,

directevidenceofa,let’scallit

quotationofTaccolainLeonardo’smanuscripts,

butthisisenoughtoletussuppose,

morethansuppose,thatLeonardo

hadaccesstoTaccola.FrancescodiGiorgio,

inheritedallTaccola’smanuscripts

andLeonardoownedoneofFrancesco’s

manuscripts.Sothereisatransmission

ofknowledgefromTaccola

toFrancescodiGiorgiotoLeonardo.

IntheSienesemanuscripts

thereareimagesofunderwater

breathingdevices,manyofwhich

aresurprisinglysimilartoLeonardo’s.

Wehaverecordsfromearly15thcenturytext

ofattemptsatputtingmen

inconditiontogounderwater.

Leonardo’sdesignseemstobeanamalgamation

ofallofthem.

ButliketheVitruvianMan,

Leonardo’sdrawings

havedistinctdifferencestoo.

It’sverycrude,veryrudedrawing,

andyoudonotunderstand

asmuchasyouunderstandfromLeonardo’s.

SoLeonardodoesn’tinvent

thefirstunderwaterdivingmask

buthedoessignificantlyadvancetheprototype.

AnditisnotjustthatLeonardo’sillustrations

arebetter,hetechnicallyimproves

theapparatus.

Leonardohasalsoenteredpopularculture

asapioneerinthefieldofflight.

Allegedlythefirsttounderstand

aviationprinciples,heisnowhonoured

astheinventorofcountlessflyingdevices

tolaunchmanthroughtheair,

fromparachutestohanggliders

tohelicopters.

HistorianDrTobiasCapwell

hascometotheEnglishcountyofWiltshire

toinvestigatethelife

ofoneofLeonardo’sforerunner’s,

EilmerofMalmesbury.//Eilmerwasamonk

basedatthemedievalmonastery

hereinMalmsbury-hewasprobablyborn

inabout980or985AD

andheprobablydied

shortlyaftertheNormaninvasionin1066.

Hisstoryappearsina12thcenturymanuscript

andrevealsanachievement

thatchallengesLeonardo’sstatus

asthetrailblazerofflightdesign.

Intheearly12thcentury

anothermonkofMalmsburyWilliam

wroteahistoryofEngland-

calledthedeedsoftheEnglishkings

andit’sinthisthatElmerappears.

“Hewasamanlearnedforthosetimes…

andinhisearlyyouth

hazardedadeedofremarkableboldness.

Hehadbysomemeans…

fastenedwingstohishandsandfeet

sothathemightflylikeDaedalus,

andcollectingthebreeze

uponthesummitofatower,

flewformorethanafurlong.

Butagitatedbytheviolenceofthewind

andtheswirlingofair…

hefell,brokebothhislegs

andwaslameeverafter.”

Themostimportantpartofthisstory

actuallyasrealhistoryisthefactthat

thehistorianWilliamofMalmesbury

isnotonlyknowntobeone

ofourmostreliablehistorians-

buthealsocomesfromthesameplace

thatEilmercamefrom.Williamwouldhave

talkedtopeoplewhosegrandparents

orgreatgrandparentshadactuallyseenEilmer

flyoverMalmsburysoit’sanextraordinary-

almosteyewitnessaccount.

ThetowerEilmerlauncheshimselffrom

isnolongerstandingbutthepresentabbey

ismuchthesameheight.

Peeringdownfromitsroof,

wecanappreciatejusthowdaring

Eilmerwastoleapintothinair.

Thespotwhereheissaidtohavelanded

isstillknowntovillagers

andiscalledOliver’sLane.

Oliverbeingthename

Eilmerismistakenlygiven

ina14thcenturyretellingofthestory.

AccordingtoWilliamofMalmesbury,

Eilmerstaysairborneforover200metres.

That’smorethanhalftheheight

oftheEmpireStatebuilding!

PlottingEilmer’sflightpath

throughthevillagetoday,

showsjusthowimpressivehisfeatwas.

ThefactthatElmercrashed

andbrokebothofhislegs

mustn’tatallbetakenatomeanthat

hisflightwasunsuccessful

hestartedataheightof25meters

andflewforadistanceofover200meters

that’sarespectableflig