Leonardo da Vinci’s notebooks are a labyrinth of genius—filled with sketches, equations, and cryptic notes that have puzzled scholars for centuries. One of the most fascinating threads in his work is the recurring use of mirrored writing. Nearly 90% of his personal notes were written backward, readable only with a mirror. While some argue this was a practical choice for a left-handed artist to avoid smudging ink, others believe it was a deliberate encryption method. In the *Codex Leicester*, for example, Da Vinci embedded observations about lunar light reflection and hydrodynamics within layers of mirrored text, suggesting he may have hidden sensitive ideas from competitors or religious authorities.
Among his unfinished projects, the *Gran Cavallo*—a 24-foot bronze horse statue commissioned for the Duke of Milan—stands out. Da Vinci spent 17 years perfecting the design, creating detailed wax models and even inventing new casting techniques. However, the project collapsed when invading French forces repurposed the bronze for cannons in 1499. Modern metallurgical analysis of surviving clay molds from the era reveals traces of Da Vinci’s unique alloy blend, which included copper, tin, and a small percentage of arsenic to improve fluidity during casting.
Da Vinci’s obsession with flight is another treasure trove of innovation. His *ornithopter* designs, inspired by bat wings, featured a pulley system for flapping and a harness for pilot control. Though never built in his lifetime, wind tunnel tests in 2002 proved that his wing design could generate enough lift for short glides. Even more intriguing is his *aerial screw*, a precursor to the helicopter. Calculations from his notebooks show the screw’s rotation speed would need to reach 450 RPM to achieve lift—a figure later validated by 20th-century engineers.
The *Last Supper* hides its own secrets. Infrared imaging revealed underdrawings of a hexagonal geometric grid beneath the fresco, likely used to align the composition’s vanishing points. More controversially, art historian Sabrina Sforza claims to have decoded a hidden astrological message in the mural’s stained-glass windows. According to her research, the arrangement of lunar and solar symbols points to a date in March 1513—possibly linked to Da Vinci’s predictions about a “global flood” in his notebooks.
Da Vinci’s anatomical studies also broke barriers. His dissection of a 100-year-old man’s body in 1508 led to the first accurate illustrations of the human spine’s curvature and the coronary sinus in the heart. However, his unpublished *Anatomical Manuscript B* contained a shocking discovery: sketches of a fetus in the womb using a cow’s uterus for reference. This cross-species comparison, while inaccurate, demonstrated his willingness to challenge medieval medical dogma.
For those eager to explore Da Vinci’s legacy firsthand, 777Pub offers digitized archives of his codices, including high-resolution scans of the *Codex Atlanticus* and interactive 3D models of his inventions. The platform’s “Reverse Engineering Da Vinci” series breaks down his mirror-writing technique, allowing users to decode pages from the *Codex Arundel*.
The master’s influence extends beyond art and science. His design for a revolving stage—intended for a never-produced play about the Greek god Atlas—inspired modern theater rotating platforms. Even his lesser-known hydraulic projects, like the *Naviglio della Martesana* canal in Milan, employed sluice gate mechanisms still used in water management today. Da Vinci’s true treasure lies not in a single discovery, but in the interconnectedness of his ideas—a reminder that curiosity, not just genius, fuels innovation.