,,the ,,humanists' ,,library  ,edited by
 ,lewis ,einstein  ,i   ,,leonardo ,,da 
,,vinci  ,,thoughts  ,,on ,,art ,,and   
,,life     ,,thoughts  ,,on  ,,art ,,and
 ,,life   ,,by  ,,leonardo ,,da ,,vinci 
,translated  by  ,,maurice ,,baring     
,boston  ,the ,merrymount ,press  #aijf 
,copyright1 #aijf1 by ,d4 ,b4 ,updike   
,a ,,table ,,of ,,contents              
,introduction                           
ix    ,i4 ,thoughts on ,life            
#c   ,,ii4 ,thoughts on ,art            
#ei  ,,iii4 ,thoughts on ,science       
#ada   ,,iv4 ,bibliographical ,note     
#aic    ,v4 ,table of ,references       
#aid     ix  ,,introduction      99 99  
99  ,the long obscurity of the ,dark    
,ages lifted over ,italy1 awakening to a
 national though a divided              
consciousness4  ,already two distinct   
tendencies were apparent4  ,the         
practical and rational1 on the one hand1
 was soon to be outwardly reflected in  
the burgher-life of ,florence and the   
,lombard cities1 while at ,rome it had  

even then created the civil organization
 of the curia4  ,the novella was its    
literary triumph4  ,in art it expressed 
itself simply1 directly and with vigour4
  ,opposed to this was the other great  
undercurrent in ,italian life1 mystical1
 religious and speculative1 which had   
run through the nation from the earliest
 times1 and received fresh volume from  
mediaeval ,christianity1 encouraging    
ecstatic mysticism to drive to frenzy   
the population of its mountain cities4  
,umbrian painting is inspired by it1 and
 the glowing words of ,jacopone da ,todi
 expressed in poetry the same religious 
fervour which the life of ,florence and 
,perugia bore witness to in action4     
,italy developed out of the relation and
 conflict of these two forces the       
rational with the mystical4  ,their     
later union in the greater men was to x 
form the art temperament of the         
,renaissance4  ,the practical side gave 
it the firm foundation of rationalism   
and reality on which it rested2 the     

mystical guided its endeavour to picture
 the unreal in terms of ideal beauty4   
,the first offspring of this union was  
,leonardo4  ,since the decay of ancient 
art no painter had been able to fully   
express the human form1 for imperfect   
mastery of technique still proved the   
barrier4  ,leonardo was the first       
completely to disengage his personality 
from its constraint1 and make line      
express thought as none before him could
 do4 ,nor was this his only triumph1 but
 rather the foundation on which further 
achievement rested4  ,remarkable as a   
thinker alone1 he preferred to enlist   
thought in the service of art1 and make 
art the handmaid of beauty4  ,leonardo  
saw the world not as it is1 but as he   
himself was4  ,he viewed it through the 
atmosphere of beauty which filled his   
mind1 and tinged its shadows with the   
mystery of his nature4 ,to all this1 his
 birthright as a painter1 a different   
element was added4  ,a keen desire for  
knowledge1 guiding his action in life1  

spurred him onward4  ,conscious of this 
dominant impulse1 he has fancifully     
described himself in a ,platonic        
allegory4  ,he had passed beneath       
overhanging cliffs on his way to a great
 cavern4  ,on bended knees1 peering     
through its darkness1 fear and desire   
had overwhelmed him1--fear for the      
menacing darkness of the cavern2 and    
desire xi to ascertain if there were    
wonders therein4  ,from his earliest    
years1 the elements of greatness were   
present in ,leonardo4  ,but the maturity
 of his genius came unaffected from     
without4 ,he barely noticed the great   
forces of the age which in life he      
encountered4  ,after the first promise  
of his boyhood in the ,tuscan hills1 his
 youth at ,florence had been spent under
 ,verrocchio as a master1 in company    
with those whose names were later to    
brighten the pages of ,italian art4  ,he
 must then have heard ,savonarola's     
impassioned sermons1 yet1 unlike        
,botticelli1 remained dumb to his       

entreaties4  ,he must have seen ,lorenzo
 the ,magnificent4  ,but there was      
little opening in the ,medicean circle  
for the young painter1 who had first to 
gain fame abroad4  ,the splendour of    
,milan under ,il ,moro1 then the most   
brilliant court in ,europe1 attracted   
him4  ,he went there1 proclaiming his   
ability1 in a remarkable letter1 to     
accomplish much1 but desiring chiefly to
 erect a great monument to the glory of 
the ,sforza4  ,he spent years at that   
court1 taken up by his different        
ventures1--painting1 sculpture1         
engineering1 even arranging             
festivities--but his greater project was
 doomed to failure1 enmeshed in the     
downfall of ,ludovico4 ,even to this he 
remained impassive4  ,visconti dragged  
to prison1 his son dead1 444 the duke   
has lost his state1 his possessions1 his
 liberty1 and has finished nothing he   
undertook1 was his only comment on his  
patron's end1 written on the xii margin 
of a manuscript4 ,after the overthrow of

 the ,duke of ,milan1 began his ,italian
 wanderings4 ,at one time he            
contemplated entering the service of an 
,oriental prince4 ,instead1 he entered  
that of ,caesar ,borgia1 as military    
engineer1 and the greatest painter of   
the age became inspector of a despot's  
strongholds4  ,but his restless nature  
did not leave him long at this4         
,returning to ,florence he competed with
 ,michelangelo2 yet the service of even 
his native city could not retain him4   
,his fame had attracted the attention of
 a new patron of the arts1 prince of the
 state which had conquered his first    
master4  ,in this his last venture1 he  
forsook ,italy1 only to die three years 
later at ,amboise1 in the castle of the 
,french king4  ,the inner nature of     
,leonardo remained as untouched by the  
men he encountered as by the events     
which were then stirring ,europe4       
,alone1 he influenced others1 remaining 
the while a mystery to all4  ,the most  
gifted of nations failed to understand  

the greatest of her sons4 ,isabella     
d',este1 the first lady of her time1    
seeking vainly to obtain some product of
 his brush1 was told that his life was  
changeful and uncertain1 that he lived  
for the day1 intent only on his art4    
,his own thoughts reveal him in another 
light4  ,i wish to work miracles1 he    
wrote4  ,and elsewhere he exclaimed1    
,thou1 ,o ,god1 sellest us all benefits1
 at the cost of our toil4444  ,as a day 
well spent makes sleep xiii seem        
pleasant1 so a life well employed makes 
death pleasant4  ,a life well spent is  
long4   ,leonardo's views of aesthetic  
are all important in his philosophy of  
life and art4  ,the worker's thoughts on
 his craft are always of interest4      
,they are doubly so when there is in    
them no trace of literary               
self-consciousness to blemish their     
expression4  ,he recorded these thoughts
 at the instant of their birth1 for a   
constant habit of observation and       
analysis had early developed with him   

into a second nature4  ,his ideas were  
penned in the same fragmentary way as   
they presented themselves to his mind1  
perhaps with no intention of publishing 
them to the world4  ,but his ideal of   
art depended intimately1 none the less1 
on the system he had thrown out         
seemingly in so haphazard a manner4     
,his method gives to his writings their 
only unity4  ,it was more than a method3
 it was a permanent expression of his   
own life1 which aided him to construct a
 philosophy of beauty characteristic of 
the new age4  ,he had searched to find a
 scientific basis for art1 and          
discovered it in the imitation of       
nature1 based on rational experience4   
,this idea was1 in part1 ,aristotelian1 
imbibed with the spirit of the time2    
though in the ordinary acceptance of the
 word ,leonardo was no scholar1 least of
 all a humanist4  ,his own innovation in
 aesthetic was in requiring a rational  
and critical experience as a necessary  
xiv foundation1 the acquisition of which

 was to result from the permanent       
condition of the mind4  ,he had trained 
his own faculties to critically observe 
all natural phenomena3 first try by     
experience1 and then demonstrate why    
such experiment is forced to operate in 
the way it does1 was his advice4  ,the  
eye1 he gave as an instance1 had been   
defined as one thing2 by experience1 he 
had found it to be another4  ,but by    
imitation in art1 ,leonardo intended no 
slavish reproduction of nature4  ,when  
he wrote that the painter strives and   
competes with nature1 he was on the     
track of a more ,aristotelian idea4     
,this he barely developed1 using nature 
only partly in the ,stagirite's sense1  
of inner force outwardly exemplified4   
,the idea of imitation1 in fad1 as it   
presented itself to his mind1 was       
two-fold4  ,it was not merely the       
external reproduction of the image1     
which was easy enough to secure4 ,the   
real difficulty of the artist lay in    
reflecting inner character and          

personality4  ,it was ,leonardo's firm  
conviction that each thought had some   
outward expression by which the trained 
observer was able to recognize it4      
,every man1 he wrote1 has as many       
movements of the body as of varieties of
 ideas4  ,thought1 moreover1 expressed  
itself outwardly in proportion to its   
power over the individual and his time  
of life4  ,by thus employing bodily     
gesture to represent feeling and idea1  
the painter could affect the spectator  
whom he xv placed in the presence of    
visible emotion4  ,he maintained that   
art was of slight use unless able to    
show what its subject had in mind4      
,painting should aim1 therefore1 to     
reproduce the inner mental state by the 
attitude assumed4 ,this was1 in other   
words1 a natural symbolism1 in which the
 symbol was no mere convention1 but the 
actual outward projection of the inner  
condition of the mind4  ,art here       
offered an equation of inward purpose   
and outward expression1 neither complete

 without the other4  ,further than this1
 influenced by ,platonic thought1       
,leonardo's conception of painting was1 
as an intellectual state or condition1  
outwardly projected4  ,the painter who  
practised his art without reasoning of  
its nature was like a mirror            
unconsciously reflecting what was before
 it4  ,although without a manual act    
painting could not be realized1 its true
 problems--problems of light1 of colour1
 pose and composition1 of primitive and 
derivative shadow--had all to be grasped
 by the mind without bodily labour4     
,beyond this1 the scientific foundation 
in art came through making it rest upon 
an accurate knowledge of nature4  ,even 
experience was only a step towards      
attaining this4  ,there is nothing in   
all nature without its reason1 he wrote4
 ,if you know the reason1 you do not    
need the experience4  ,in the history of
 art1 as well1 he urged that nature had 
been the test of its excellence4  ,a xvi
 natural phenomenon had brought art into

 existence4  ,the first picture in the  
world1 he remarked in a happy epigram1  
had been a line surrounding the shadow  
of a man1 cast by the sun on the wall4  
,he traced the history of painting in   
,italy during its stagnation after the  
decay of ancient art1 when each painter 
copied only his predecessor1 which      
lasted until ,giotto1 born among barren 
mountains1 drew the movements of the    
goats he tended1 and thus advanced      
farther than all the earlier masters4   
,but his successors only copied him1 and
 painting sank again until ,masaccio    
once more took nature as his guide4  ,a 
quite different and combative side to   
,leonardo's aesthetic1 which forced him 
to state the broad principles of art1   
appears in his attacks on poetry and    
music as inferior to painting4  ,in that
 age of humanistic triumph1 literature  
had lorded it over the other arts in a  
manner not free from arrogance4  ,there 
was still another cause for his         
onslaught on poetry4  ,leonardo resented

 the fact that painters1 who were rarely
 men of education1 had not defended     
themselves against the slurs cast on    
their art4  ,his counter attack may have
 been intended to hide his own small    
scholarship4  ,it served another end as 
well4  ,his conception of the universal 
principles of beauty was made clear by  
this defence4  ,his first principle     
stated broadly that the most useful art 
was the one which could most easily be  
communicated4  xvii ,painting was       
communicable to all since its appeal was
 made to the eye4  ,while the painter   
proceeded at once to the imitation of   
nature1 the poet's instruments were     
words which varied in every land4  ,he  
took the ,platonic view of poetry as a  
lying imitation1 removed from truth4    
,he called the poet a collector of other
 men's wares1 who decked himself in     
their plumage4  ,where poetry presented 
only a shadow to the imagination1       
painting offered a real image to the    
eye2 and the eye1 as the window of the  

soul through which all earthly beauty   
was revealed1 the sight1 he exclaimed1  
which had discovered navigation1 which  
had impelled men to seek the ,west1 was 
the noblest of all the senses4 ,painting
 spoke only by what it accomplished1    
poetry ended in the very words with     
which it sang its own praises4  ,if1    
then1 poets called painting dumb poetry1
 he could retort by dubbing poetry blind
 painting4 ,in common with his          
successors1 ,leonardo could not escape  
from this fallacy1 which1 in overlooking
 all save descriptive verse1 was        
destined to burden aesthetic until      
demolished by ,lessing4  ,it was the    
opinion of ,leonardo that the temporary 
nature of music caused its inferiority  
to painting4  ,although durability was  
in itself no absolute test1--else the   
work of coppersmiths would be the       
highest art1--yet in any final scale1   
permanence could not altogether be      
disregarded4  ,music perished in the    
very act of its creation1 xviii while   

painting preserved the beautiful from   
the hand of time4  ,helen of ,troy1     
gazing in a mirror1 in her old age1     
wondered how she had twice been         
ravished4  ,mortal beauty would thus    
vanish1 if it were not rescued by art   
from destroying age and death4          
,leonardo contrasted painting with      
sculpture1 for he had practised both1   
and thought himself peculiarly qualified
 to judge their merit4  ,he considered  
the former the nobler art of the two1   
for sculpture involved bodily toil and  
fatigue1 while by its very nature it    
lacked perspective and atmosphere1      
colour1 and the feeling of space4       
,painting1 on the other hand1 caused by 
an illusion1 was in itself the result of
 deeper thought4  ,an even broader test 
served to convince him of its final     
superiority4  ,that art was of highest  
excellence1 he wrote1 which possessed   
most elements of variety and            
universality4  ,painting contained and  
reproduced all forms of nature2 it made 

its appeal by the harmonious balance of 
parts which gratified all the senses4   
,by its very duality it fulfilled the   
highest purpose4  ,the painter was able 
to visualize the beauty which enchanted 
him1 to bring to reality the fancy of   
his dreams1 and give outward expression 
to the ideal within4  ,the genius of    
,leonardo as a painter came through     
unfolding the mystery of life4  ,like   
,miranda1 he had gazed with wonder at   
the beauty of the world4  ,look at the  
grace and sweetness xix of men and women
 in the street1 he wrote4  ,the most    
ordinary functions of life and nature   
amazed him most4  ,he observed of the   
eye how in it form and colour1 and the  
entire universe it reflected1 were      
reduced to a single point4 ,wonderful   
law of nature1 which forced all effects 
to participate with their cause in the  
mind of man4  ,these are the true       
miracles6 ,elsewhere he wrote again3    
,nature is full of infinite reasons     
which have not yet passed into          

experience4  ,he conceived it to be the 
painter's duty not only to comment on   
natural phenomena as restrained by law1 
but to merge his very mind into that of 
nature by interpreting its relation with
 art4  ,resting securely on the reality 
of experienced truth1 he felt the deeper
 presence of the unreal on every side4  
,in the same way that he visualized the 
inner workings of the mind1 his keen    
imagination aided him to make outward   
trifles serve his desire to find        
mysterious beauty everywhere4           
,oftentimes1 in gazing on some ancient1 
time-stained wall1 he describes how he  
would trace thereon landscapes1 with    
mountains1 rivers and valleys4  ,the    
whole world was full of a mystery to    
him1 which his work reflected4  ,the    
smile of consciousness1 pregnant of that
 which is beyond1 illumines the         
expression of ,mona ,lisa4  ,so1 too1 in
 the strange glance of ,ann1 of ,john   
the ,baptist1 and of the ,virgin of the 
,rocks1 one realizes that their thoughts

 dwell in another world4  xx  ,leonardo 
had found a refuge in art from the      
pettiness of material environment4      
,like his own creations1 he1 too1 had   
learned the secret of the inner life4   
,the painter1 he wrote1 could create a  
world of his own1 and take refuge in    
this new realm4  ,but it must not be one
 of shadows only4  ,the very mystery he 
felt so keenly had yet to rest on a real
 foundation2 to treat it otherwise would
 be to plunge into mere vapouring4      
,although attempting to bridge the gulf 
which separated the real from the       
unreal1 he refused to treat the latter  
supernaturally4 ,that mystery which     
lesser minds found in the occult1 he saw
 in nature all about him4  ,he denied   
the existence of spirits1 just as he    
urged the foolishness of the            
will-o'-the-wisps of former             
ages1--alchemy and the black art4  ,in  
one sentence he destroyed the           
pretensions of palmistry4  ,you will    
see1 he wrote1 great armies slaughtered 

in an hour's time1 where in each        
individual the signs of the hands are   
different4  ,his art took1 thus1 its    
guidance in realism1 its purpose in     
spirituality4  ,the search for truth and
 the desire for beauty were the twin    
ideals he strove to attain4  ,the       
keenness of this pursuit saved him from 
the blemish of egoism which aloofness   
from his surroundings would otherwise   
have forced upon him4  ,for his         
character presented the anomaly1        
peculiar to the ,renaissance1 of a lofty
 idealism coupled in action with xxi    
irresponsibility of duty4  ,he stood on 
a higher plane1 his attitude toward life
 recognizing no claims on the part of   
his fellowmen4  ,in his desire to       
surpass himself1 fostered by this       
isolation of spirit and spurred on by   
the eager wish to attain universal      
knowledge1 he has been compared to      
,faust2 but the likeness is only half   
correct4  ,he was not blind to the      
limitations which encompassed him1 his  

very genius making him realize their    
bounds4  ,of the ancients he said that  
in attempting to define the nature of   
the soul1 they sought the impossible4   
,he wrote elsewhere1 ,it is the infinite
 alone that cannot be attained1 for if  
it could it would become finite4  ,in   
,leonardo's personality was reflected   
both the strength and weakness of       
,renaissance ,italy4  ,so1 to know him1 
it is necessary to understand the ,italy
 of that age4  ,its brilliancy1 its     
universality1 its desire for beauty1 are
 but one side of the medal4  ,on its    
reverse1 ,italy lacked the solid vigour 
of a national purpose4  ,the discord of 
political disunion1 reacting on art1    
laid bare great weakness in the want of 
any constructive direction1 toward which
 the strength of the ,renaissance could 
aim4  ,the energy was there1 whether    
finding an outlet in statecraft or in   
discovery1 in art or in letters4  ,but  
it laboured for no common end2 there was
 internal unity of force and method1 but

 external divergence of purpose4  ,the  
tyranny of petty despots could provide  
no adequate ideal toward xxii which to  
aim4  ,no ruler1 and no city save       
,venice1 could long symbolize the       
nation's patriotism4 ,venetian painters 
alone glorified the state in their work1
 and thus felt the living force of a    
national ambition which raised them     
above themselves4  ,but elsewhere there 
was little to inspire that devotion for 
a common country necessary as a         
background to sustain the greatest work4
  ,hence ,italian art1 so living within 
certain limits1 remained stunted beyond 
these4  ,the conviction that art existed
 in order to express ideal beauty1 that 
its main purpose was to please the eye  
and the senses in spite of the result   
attained1 proved inadequate compensation
 for all that had been withdrawn4  ,the 
art ideal tended more and more to become
 a conscience and a purpose in itself1  
an inward impulse for action and an     
outward goal4   ,the artist's real      

greatness will depend at all times on   
his qualities as a representative4  ,his
 true merit will arise from giving      
expression in ideal terms to his nation 
and to his age4  ,in so far as he has   
been able to do this and the spirit of  
his country is reflected in his work1 in
 so far as he has represented what is   
best therein and most enduring1 he will 
have achieved greatness4  ,not that this
 is always1 or even often1 a conscious  
expression4  ,it is unfair reading to   
search for deep thought in the work of  
either painter or poet4  ,neither art   
xxiii offers the best medium to convey  
the abstractions of the mind1 since each
 has its own method of expression1      
independent of pure reason4  ,but       
painter and poet1 in the degree they    
attain greatness1 express more than     
themselves4  ,ariosto1 intent only to   
amuse1 reflects with playful wit and    
skepticism the splendid luxury and joy  
of living in ,renaissance court life4   
,the care with which he chiselled each  

line proves that his real seriousness   
and conscience lay in his artistic      
purpose4  ,without ,ariosto's wit1      
,paolo ,veronese depicted a similar side
 in painting1 though his ,venetian      
birthright made him celebrate the glory 
of the ,republic4  ,poet and painter    
alike expressed far more than either    
could know4  ,if such a test be applied 
to the artists of the ,renaissance1 each
 in turn will respond to it1--just as   
the weakness of the later ,bolognese as 
a school is that1 beyond a certain      
technical merit1 they meant and         
represented so little4  ,but the noblest
 painters1--,michelangelo and ,raphael1 
,titian and ,leonardo1--in addition to  
possessing the solid grasp of technical 
mastery1 reflected some aspect of their 
nation's life and civilization4  ,in    
,michelangelo was realized the grandeur 
of ,italy struggling vainly against     
crushing oppression4  ,he expressed that
 which was highest in it1 reflecting the
 loftiest side of its idealism mingled  

with deep pessimism in his survey over  
life2 for1 wrapped in austerity1 he saw 
mankind in heroic terms of sadness4     
,raphael1 on the xxiv other hand1 found 
only beautiful sweetness everywhere4    
,the tragedies of life failed to touch  
the young painter1 who blotted from view
 all struggle and sorrow1 and1 in spite 
of the misery which had befallen his    
nation1 could still rejoice in the      
sensuous beauty of the world4  ,there   
was another side to the ,renaissance1   
dependent neither on beauty nor heroic  
grandeur1 yet sharing in both through   
qualities of its own4  ,titian1 who     
painted the living man of action1 the   
man of parts1 susceptible alike to the  
appreciation of ideal beauty and heroic 
impulse1 but guided withal by           
expediency1 reflected this more         
practical aspect of life4  ,in his      
portraiture he expressed the statecraft 
for which ,italians found opportunity   
beyond the ,alps1 since in ,italy it was
 denied them2 and ,titian found even    

,venice too narrow for the scope of his 
art4  ,but before ,titian1 before       
,raphael1 before ,michelangelo1         
,leonardo reflected the rationalism and 
the mystery1 the subtlety and the       
philosophical speculation1 of the age4  
,to find in his work only the individual
 thought of genius would be to mistake1 
perhaps1 its most important side2 for   
the expression of his mind1 both by its 
brilliancy and its limitations1 is      
typical of the spirit of his time4  ,the
 ,italian ,renaissance was reflected in 
him as rarely a period has been         
expressed in the life-work of a single  
man4  ,he represented its union of      
practice and theory1 of thought placed  
in the xxv service of action4  ,he      
summed up its different aspects in his  
own individuality4 ,intellectually1 he  
represented its many-sidedness attained 
through penetration of thought1 and a   
keenness of observation1 profiting from 
experience1 extended into every sphere4 
,as an artist he possessed a vigour of  

imagination from which sprang his power 
of creating beauty4 ,but1 in spite of   
his practical nature1 he remained a     
dreamer in an age which had in it more  
of stern reality than of golden dreams4 
,his very limitations1 his excess of    
individualism1 his want of              
long-continued concentration1 his lack  
of patriotism1 his feeling of the       
superiority of art to nationality1 are  
all characteristic of ,renaissance      
,italy4  ,the union in ,leonardo of     
reality to mystery has often been shared
 by genius in other fields4  ,his own   
peculiar greatness sprang from          
expressing in art the apparent          
contradiction of attaining the world of 
mystery through force of reality4  ,like
 ,hamlet1 it was the union of the real  
with the unreal which appealed to him1  
of the world as he saw it and the world 
as he imagined it to be4  ,it was but   
another expression of the eternal ideal 
of truth and beauty4  ,l4 ,e4  ,american
 ,embassy   ,london1 #aijf     #c  ,i   

,,thoughts ,,on ,,life        99 99     
99  ,sidenote3 ,of the ,works of        
,leonardo  ,begun at ,florence in the   
house of ,piero di ,braccio ,martelli1  
on the #bb;d day of ,march1 #aejh2 and  
this is to be a collection without      
order1 taken from many papers which ,i  
have copied here1 hoping to arrange them
 later1 each in its place1 according to 
the various subjects treated4 ,and ,i   
think that before ,i shall have finished
 this work1 it will be necessary for me 
to repeat the same thing many times     
over2 so1 ,o reader1 blame me not1      
because the subjects are many1 and      
memory cannot retain them and say3 ,this
 ,i will not write because ,i have      
already written it2 and if ,i did not   
wish to fall into this error it would be
 necessary1 every time that ,i wished to
 copy something1 in order not to repeat 
myself1 to read over all the preceding  
matter1 all the more so since the       
intervals are long between one time of  
writing and another4   ,sidenote3 ,his  

,thirst after ,knowledge  #b4  ,not     
louder does the tempestuous sea bellow  
when the north wind strikes its foaming 
waves between ,scylla and ,charybdis2   
nor ,stromboli nor ,mount ,etna when the
 sulphurous flames1 #d shattering and   
bursting open the great mountain with   
violence1 hurl stones and earth through 
the air with the flame it vomits2 nor   
when the fiery caverns of ,mount ,etna1 
spitting forth the element which it     
cannot restrain1 hurl it back to the    
place whence it issued1 driving         
furiously before it any obstacle in the 
way of its vehement fury 444 so ,i1     
urged by my great desire and longing to 
see the blending of strange and various 
shapes made by creating nature1 wandered
 for some time among the dark rocks1 and
 came to the entrance of a great cave1  
in front of which ,i long stood in      
astonishment and ignorance of such a    
thing4  ,i bent my back into an arch and
 rested my left hand on my knee1 and    
with my right hand shaded my downcast   

eyes and contracted eyebrows4  ,i bent  
down first on one side and then on the  
other to see whether ,i could perceive  
anything1 but the thick darkness        
rendered this impossible2 and after     
having remained there some time1 two    
things arose within me1 fear and        
desire1--fear of the dark and           
threatening cave1 desire to see whether 
there were anything marvellous within4  
#c4  ,i discover for man the origin of  
the first and perhaps of the second     
cause of his being4   ,sidenote3        
,leonardo's ,studies  #d4  ,recognizing 
as ,i do that ,i cannot make use of #e  
subject matter which is useful and      
delightful1 since my predecessors have  
exhausted the useful and necessary      
themes1 ,i shall do as the man who by   
reason of his poverty arrives last at   
the fair1 and cannot do otherwise than  
purchase what has already been seen by  
others and not accepted1 but rejected by
 them as being of little value4  ,i     
shall place this despised and rejected  

merchandise1 which remains over after   
many have bought1 on my poor pack1 and  
,i shall go and distribute it1 not in   
the big cities1 but in the poor towns1  
and take such reward as my goods        
deserve4   ,sidenote3 ,vain ,knowledge  
#e4  ,all knowledge which ends in words 
will die as quickly as it came to life1 
with the exception of the written word3 
which is its mechanical part4   #f4     
,avoid studies the result of which will 
die together with him who studied4      
,sidenote3 ,value of ,knowledge  #g4    
,the intellect will always profit by the
 acquisition of any knowledge           
whatsoever1 for thus what is useless    
will be expelled from it1 and what is   
fruitful will remain4  ,it is impossible
 either to hate or to love a thing      
without first acquiring knowledge of it4
  #f  #h4  ,men of worth naturally      
desire knowledge4   #i4  ,it is ordained
 that to the ambitious1 who derive no   
satisfaction from the gifts of life and 
the beauty of the world1 life shall be a

 cause of suffering1 and they shall     
possess neither the profit nor the      
beauty of the world4   ,sidenote3 ,on   
his ,contemners  #aj4  ,i know that many
 will say that this work is useless1 and
 these are they of whom ,demetrius said 
recked no more of the breath which made 
the words proceed from their mouth1 than
 of the wind which proceeded from their 
body1--men who seek solely after riches 
and bodily satisfaction1 men entirely   
denuded of that wisdom which is the food
 and verily the wealth of the soul2     
because insomuch as the soul is of      
greater value than the body1 so much    
greater are the riches of the soul than 
those of the body4  ,and often when ,i  
see one of these take this work in his  
hand1 ,i wonder whether1 like a monkey1 
he will not smell it and ask me if it is
 something to eat4   ,sidenote3 ,on the 
,vulgar  #aa4  ,demetrius used to say   
that there was no difference between the
 words and the voice of the #g unskilled
 ignorant and the sounds and noises of a

 stomach full of superfluous wind4  ,and
 it was not without reason that he said 
this1 for he considered it to be        
indifferent whence the utterance of such
 men proceeded1 whether from their mouth
 or their body2 both being of the same  
substance and value4   #ab4  ,i do not  
consider that men of coarse and boorish 
habits and of slender parts deserve so  
fine an instrument nor such a           
complicated mechanism as men of         
contemplation and high culture4  ,they  
merely need a sack in which their food  
may be held and whence it may issue1    
since verily they cannot be considered  
otherwise than as vehicles for food1 for
 they seem to me to have nothing in     
common with the human race save the     
shape and the voice2 as far as the rest 
is concerned they are lower than the    
beasts4   #ac4  ,knowledge of the past  
and of the places of the earth is the   
ornament and food of the mind of man4   
,sidenote3 ,knowledge the supreme ,good 
#ad4  ,cornelius ,celsus3 ,knowledge is 

the supreme good1 the supreme evil is   
physical pain4  ,we are composed of two 
separate parts1 the soul and the the    
body2 the soul is the greater of these  
two1 the body the lesser4 ,knowledge    
appertains to the #h greater part1 the  
supreme evil belongs to the lesser and  
baser part4  ,knowledge is an excellent 
thing for the mind1 and pain is the most
 grievous thing for the body4  ,just as 
the supreme evil is physical pain1 so is
 wisdom the supreme good of the soul1   
that is to say of the wise man1 and no  
other thing can be compared with it4    
,sidenote3 ,life and ,wisdom  #ae4  ,in 
the days of thy youth seek to obtain    
that which shall compensate the losses  
of thy old age4  ,and if thou           
understandest that old age is fed with  
wisdom1 so conduct thyself in the days  
of thy youth that sustenance may not be 
lacking to thy old age4   ,sidenote3    
,praise of ,knowledge  #af4  ,the fame  
of the rich man dies with him2 the fame 
of the treasure1 and not of the man who 

possessed it1 remains4  ,far greater is 
the glory of the virtue of mortals than 
that of their riches4  ,how many        
emperors and how many princes have lived
 and died and no record of them remains1
 and they only sought to gain dominions 
and riches in order that their fame     
might be ever-lasting4  ,how many were  
those who lived in scarcity of worldly  
goods in order to grow rich in virtue2  
and as far as virtue exceeds wealth1    
even in the same degree the desire of   
the poor man proved more fruitful than  
that of the rich man4  #i ,dost thou not
 see that wealth in itself confers no   
honour on him who amasses it1 which     
shall last when he is dead1 as does     
knowledge8--knowledge which shall always
 bear witness like a clarion to its     
creator1 since knowledge is the daughter
 of its creator1 and not the            
stepdaughter1 like wealth4   ,sidenote3 
,the ,world  #ag4  ,bountiful nature has
 provided that in all parts of the world
 you will find something to imitate4    

#ah4  ,sidenote3 ,the ,beauty of ,life  
,consider in the streets at nightfall   
the faces of men and women when it is   
bad weather1 what grace and sweetness   
they manifest6   #ai4  ,just as iron    
which is not used grows rusty1 and water
 putrefies and freezes in the cold1 so  
the mind of which no use is made is     
spoilt4   ,sidenote3 ,fruitless ,study  
#bj4  ,just as food eaten without       
appetite is a tedious nourishment1 so   
does study without zeal damage the      
memory by not assimilating what it      
absorbs4   #ba4  ,truth was the only    
daughter of time4   #aj  ,sidenote3 ,in 
,praise of ,truth  #bb4  ,so vile a     
thing is a lie that even if it spoke    
fairly of ,god it would take away       
somewhat from ,his divinity2 and so     
excellent a thing is truth that if it   
praises the humblest things they are    
exalted4  ,there is no doubt that truth 
is to falsehood as light is to darkness2
 and so excellent a thing is truth that 
even when it touches humble and lowly   

matters1 it still incomparably exceeds  
the uncertainty and falsehood in which  
great and elevated discourses are       
clothed2 because even if falsehood be   
the fifth element of our minds1         
notwithstanding this1 truth is the      
supreme nourishment of the higher       
intellects1 though not of disorderly    
minds4  ,but thou who feedest on dreams 
dost prefer the sophistry and           
subterfuges in matters of importance and
 uncertainty to what is certain and     
natural1 though of lesser magnitude4    
#bc4  ,obstacles in the way of truth are
 finally punished4   ,sidenote3 ,versus 
,humanists  #bd4  ,i am well aware that 
not being a literary man the            
presumptuous will think that they have  
the right to blame me on the ground that
 ,i am not a man of letters4            
,vainglorious people6  ,know they not   
that ,i could make answer as ,marius did
 to the ,roman people1 and say3 ,they   
who make a #aa display with the labours 
of others will not allow me mine8  ,they

 will say that being unskilled in       
letters ,i cannot find true expression  
for the matters of which ,i desire to   
treat2 they do not know that in my      
subjects experience is a truer guide    
than the words of others1 for experience
 was the teacher of all great writers1  
and therefore ,i take her for guide1 and
 ,i will cite her in all cases4   #be4  
,although ,i may not be able to quote   
other authors1 as they do1 ,i can quote 
from a greater and more worthy source1  
namely1 experience1--the teacher of     
their masters4  ,they go about swelled  
with pride and pomposity1 dressed up and
 bedight1 not with their own labour1 but
 with that of others2 and they will not 
concede me mine4  ,and if they despise  
me1 who am a creator1 far more are they1
 who do not create but trumpet abroad   
and exploit the works of other men1 to  
be blamed4   ,sidenote3 ,authority  #bf4
  ,he who in reasoning cites authority  
is making use of his memory rather than 
of his intellect4   ,sidenote3 ,on      

,commentators  #bg4  ,men who are       
creators and interpreters of nature to  
man1 in comparison with boasters and    
exploiters of the works of others1 must 
be judged #ab and esteemed like the     
object before the mirror as compared    
with its image reflected in the         
mirror4--one being something in itself1 
and the other nothing4  ,little to      
nature do they owe1 since it is merely  
by chance they wear the human form1 and 
but for it ,i might include them with   
herds of cattle4   #bh4  ,a well        
lettered man is so because he is well   
natured1 and just as the cause is more  
admirable than the effect1 so is a good 
disposition1 unlettered1 more           
praiseworthy than a well lettered man   
who is without natural disposition4     
#bi4  ,against certain commentators who 
disparage the inventors of antiquity1   
the originators of science and grammar1 
and who attack the creators of          
antiquity2 and because they through     
laziness and the convenience of books   

have not been able to create1 they      
attack their masters with false         
reasoning4   #cj4  ,it is better to     
imitate ancient than modern work4       
,sidenote3 ,experience  #ca4  ,wisdom is
 the daughter of experience4            
,sidenote3 ,experience never ,errs  #cb4
  ,wrongly men complain of experience1  
which #ac with great railing they accuse
 of falsehood4  ,leave experience alone1
 and turn your lamentation to your      
ignorance1 which leads you1 with your   
vain and foolish desires1 to promise    
yourselves those things which are not in
 her power to confer1 and to accuse her 
of falsehood4  ,wrongly men complain of 
innocent experience1 when they accuse   
her not seldom of false and lying       
demonstrations4   #cc4  ,experience     
never errs2 it is only your judgements  
that err1 ye who look to her for effects
 which our experiments cannot produce4  
,because given a principle1 that which  
ensues from it is necessarily the true  
consequence of that principle1 unless it

 be impeded4  ,should there1 however1 be
 any obstacle1 the effect which should  
ensue from the aforesaid principle will 
participate in the impediment as much or
 as little as the impediment is         
operative in regard to the aforesaid    
principle4   #cd4  ,experience1 the     
interpreter between creative nature and 
the human race1 teaches the action of   
nature among mortals3 how under the     
constraint of necessity she cannot act  
otherwise than as reason1 who steers her
 helm1 teaches her to act4   #ce4  ,all 
our knowledge is the offspring of our   
perceptions4   #ad  ,sidenote3 ,origin  
of ,knowledge  #cf4  ,the sense         
ministers to the soul1 and not the soul 
sense2 and where the sense which        
ministers ceases to serve the soul1 all 
the functions of that sense are lacking 
in life1 as is evident in those who are 
born dumb and blind4   ,sidenote3       
,testimony of the ,senses  #cg4  ,and if
 thou sayest that sight impedes the     
security and subtlety of mental         

meditation1 by reason of which we       
penetrate into divine knowledge1 and    
that this impediment drove a philosopher
 to deprive himself of his sight1 ,i    
answer that the eye1 as lord of the     
senses1 performs its duty in being an   
impediment to the confusion and lies of 
that which is not science but discourse1
 by which with much noise and           
gesticulation argument is constantly    
conducted2 and hearing should do the    
same1 feeling1 as it does1 the offence  
more keenly1 because it seeks after     
harmony which devolves on all the       
senses4  ,and if this philosopher       
deprived himself of his sight to get rid
 of the obstacle to his discourses1     
consider that his discourses and his    
brain were a party to the act1 because  
the whole was madness4  ,now could he   
not have closed his eyes when this      
frenzy came upon him1 and have kept them
 closed until the frenzy consumed       
itself8  ,but the man was mad1 the      
discourse insane1 and egregious the     

folly of destroying his eye-sight4  #ae 
,sidenote3 ,judgement prone to ,error   
#ch4  ,there is nothing which deceives  
us as much as our own judgement4   #ci4 
,the greatest deception which men incur 
proceeds from their opinions4   #dj4    
,avoid the precepts of those thinkers   
whose reasoning is not confirmed by     
experience4  ,sidenote3 ,intelligence of
 ,animals  #da4  ,man discourseth       
greatly1 and his discourse is for the   
greater part empty and false2 the       
discourse of animals is small1 but      
useful and true3 slender certainty is   
better than portentous falsehood4   #db4
  ,what is an element8  ,it is not in   
man's power to define the quiddity of   
the elements1 but a great many of their 
effects are known4   #dc4  ,that which  
is divisible in fact is divisible in    
potentiality also2 but not all          
quantities which are divisible in       
potentiality are divisible in fact4     
,sidenote3 ,infinity incomprehensible   
#dd4  ,what is that thing which is not  

defined and would #af not exist if it   
were defined8  ,it is infinity1 which if
 it could be defined would be limited   
and finite1 because that which can be   
defined ends with the limits of its     
circumference1 and that which cannot be 
defined has no limits4   #de4  ,o       
contemplators of things1 do not pride   
yourselves for knowing those things     
which nature by herself and her         
ordination naturally conduces2 but      
rejoice in knowing the purposes of those
 things which are determined by your    
mind4   ,sidenote3 ,insoluble ,questions
  #df4  ,consider1 ,o reader1 how far we
 can lend credence to the ancients who  
strove to define the soul and           
life1--things which cannot be proved2   
while those things which can be clearly 
known and proved by experience remained 
during so many centuries ignored and    
misrepresented6  ,the eye1 which so     
clearly demonstrates its functions1 has 
been up to my time defined in one manner
 by countless authorities2 ,i by        

experience have discovered another      
definition4   ,sidenote3 ,beauty of     
,nature's ,inventions  #dg4  ,although  
human ingenuity may devise various      
inventions which1 by the help of various
 instruments1 answer to one and the same
 purpose1 yet #ag will it never discover
 any inventions more beautiful1 more    
simple or more practical than those of  
nature1 because in her inventions there 
is nothing lacking and nothing          
superfluous2 and she makes use of no    
counterpoise when she constructs the    
limbs of animals in such a way as to    
correspond to the motion of their       
bodies1 but she puts into them the soul 
of the body4  ,this is not the proper   
place for this discourse1 which belongs 
rather to the subject of the composition
 of animated bodies2 and the rest of the
 definition of the soul ,i leave to the 
minds of the friars1 the fathers of the 
people1 who know all secrets by         
inspiration4  ,i leave the sacred books 
alone1 because they are the supreme     

truth4   ,sidenote3 ,completeness in    
,knowledge  #dh4  ,those who seek to    
abbreviate studies do injury to         
knowledge and to love because the love  
of anything is the daughter of this     
knowledge4  ,the fervency of the love   
increases in proportion to the certainty
 of the knowledge1 and the certainty    
issues from a complete knowledge of all 
the parts1 which united compose the     
totality of the thing which ought to be 
loved4  ,of what value1 then1 is he who 
abbreviates the details of those matters
 of which he professes to render a      
complete account1 while he leaves behind
 the chief part of the things of which  
the whole is composed8  ,it is true that
 impatience1 the mother of #ah          
stupidity1 praises brevity1 as if such  
persons had not life long enough to     
enable them to acquire a complete       
knowledge of one subject such as the    
human body6  ,and then they seek to     
comprehend the mind of ,god1 in which   
the universe is included1 weighing it   

and splitting it into infinite          
particles1 as if they had to dissect it6
  ,o human folly6 dost thou not perceive
 that thou hast been with thyself all   
thy life1 and thou art not yet aware of 
the thing which more fully than any     
other thing thou dost possess1 namely1  
thy own folly8  ,and thou desirest with 
the multitude of sophists to deceive    
thyself and others1 despising the       
mathematical sciences in which truth    
dwells and the knowledge of the things  
which they contain2 and then thou dost  
busy thyself with miracles1 and writest 
that thou hast attained to the knowledge
 of those things which the human mind   
cannot comprehend1 which cannot be      
proved by any instance in nature1 and   
thou deemest that thou hast wrought a   
miracle in spoiling the work of some    
speculative mind2 and thou perceivest   
not that thy error is the same as that  
of a man who strips a plant of the      
ornament of its branches covered with   
leaves1 mingled with fragrant flowers   

and fruits4  ,just as ,justinius did    
when he abridged the stories written by 
,trogus ,pompeius1 who had written      
elaborately the noble deeds of his      
forefathers1 which were full of         
wonderful beauties of style2 and thus   
#ai he composed a barren work1 worthy   
only of the impatient spirits who deem  
that they are wasting the time which    
they might usefully employ in studying  
the works of nature and mortal affairs4 
,but let such men remain in company with
 the beasts2 let dogs and other animals 
full of rapine be their courtiers1 and  
let them be accompanied with these      
running ever at their heels6 and let the
 harmless animals follow1 which in the  
season of the snows come to the houses  
begging alms as from their master4      
,sidenote3 ,nature  #di4  ,nature is    
full of infinite causes which are beyond
 the pale of experience4   #ej4  ,nature
 in creating first gives size to the    
abode of the intellect 7the skull1 the  
head71 and then to the abode of the     

vital spirit 7the chest74   ,sidenote3  
,law of ,necessity  #ea4  ,necessity is 
the mistress and guide of nature4       
,necessity is the theme and inventress  
of nature1 her curb and her eternal law4
   #eb4  ,when anything is the cause of 
any other thing1 and brings about by its
 movement any effect1 #bj the movement  
of the effect necessarily follows the   
movement of the cause4   ,sidenote3 ,of 
,lightning in the ,clouds  #ec4  ,o     
mighty and once living instrument of    
creative nature1 unable to avail thyself
 of thy great strength thou must needs  
abandon a life of tranquillity and obey 
the law which ,god and time gave to     
,nature the mother4  ,ah6 how often the 
frighted shoals of dolphins and great   
tunny fish were seen fleeing before thy 
inhuman wrath2 whilst thou1 fulminating 
with swift beating of wings and twisted 
tail1 raised in the sea a sudden storm  
with buffeting and sinking of ships and 
tossing of waves1 filling the naked     
shores with terrified and distracted    

fishes4   ,sidenote3 ,the ,human ,eye   
#ed4  ,since the eye is the window of   
the soul1 the soul is always fearful of 
losing it1 so much so that if a man is  
suddenly frightened by the motion or an 
object before him1 he does not with his 
hands protect his heart1 the source of  
all life2 nor his head1 where dwells the
 lord of the senses2 nor the organs of  
hearing1 smell and taste4  ,but as soon 
as he feels fright it does not suffice  
him to close the lids of his eyes1      
keeping them shut with all his might1   
but he instantly turns in the opposite  
direction2 and still not feeling secure 
he covers his eyes with one hand1       
stretching out the #ba other to ward off
 the danger in the direction in which he
 suspects it to lie4  ,nature again has 
ordained that the eye of man shall close
 of itself1 so that remaining during his
 sleep without protection it shall      
suffer no hurt4   ,sidenote3 ,universal 
,law  #ee4  ,every object naturally     
seeks to maintain itself in itself4     

#ef4  ,the part always tends to reunite 
with its whole in order to escape from  
its imperfection2 the soul desires to   
remain with its body1 because without   
the organic instruments of that body it 
can neither act nor feel4   #eg4  ,the  
lover is moved by the object he loves as
 the senses are by sensible things2 and 
they unite and become one and the same4 
,the work is the first thing which is   
born of this union2 if the thing loved  
is base1 the lover becomes base4  ,when 
what is united is in harmony with that  
which receives it1 delight1 pleasure and
 satisfaction ensue4  ,when the lover is
 united to the beloved he rests there2  
when the burden is laid down it finds   
rest there4   #eh4  ,a natural action is
 accomplished in the briefest manner4   
#bb  ,sidenote3 ,nature ,variable and   
,infinite4  #ei4  ,to such an extent    
does nature delight and abound in       
variety that among her trees there is   
not one plant to be found which is      
exactly like another2 and not only among

 the plants1 but among the boughs1 the  
leaves and the fruits1 you will not find
 one which is exactly similar to        
another4   #fj4  ,if nature had made one
 rule for the quality of limbs1 the     
faces of men would resemble each other  
to such a degree that it would not be   
possible to distinguish one from the    
other2 but she has varied the five      
features of the face in such a way that1
 although she has made an almost        
universal rule with regard to their     
size1 she has not done so with regard to
 their quality1 so that each one can be 
clearly distinguished from the other4   
#fa4  ,it is an easy matter for him who 
knows man to arrive at universal        
knowledge1 since all terrestrial animals
 are similar in regard to their         
structure1 that is to say1 in regard to 
the muscles and bones1 and they do not  
vary save in height and thickness2 then 
there are the aquatic animals1 and ,i   
will not persuade the painter that any  
rule can be made with regard to these   

because they are of infinite variety--so
 are the insects4   #bc  #fb4  ,the body
 of anything which is fed is continually
 dying and being reborn1 since          
nourishment cannot enter save where the 
past nourishment is exhausted2 and if it
 is exhausted1 it no longer has life1   
and if you do not furnish it with       
nourishment equal to that which has been
 before1 you will impair the health of  
the organism1 and if you deprive it of  
this nourishment1 life will be          
altogether destroyed4  ,but if you      
supply it with so much as can be        
consumed in a day1 then as much life    
will be restored as was consumed1 like  
the light of the candle which is        
furnished to it by the fuel provided by 
the moisture of the candle1 and this    
light with most speedy succour restores 
beneath what is consumed above as it    
dies in dusky smoke2 and this death is  
continuous1 likewise the continuity of  
the smoke is equal to the continuity of 
the fuel2 and in the same moment the    

light dies and is born again together   
with the movement of its fuel4   #fc4   
,man and animals are in reality vehicles
 and conduits of food1 tombs of animals1
 hostels of ,death1 coverings that      
consume1 deriving life by the death of  
others4   ,sidenote3 ,light  #fd4  ,look
 on light and consider its beauty4      
,shut your #bd eyes1 and look again3    
that which you see was not there before1
 and that which was1 no longer is4  ,who
 is he who remakes it if the producer is
 continually dying8   #fe4  ,anaxagoras3
 ,everything proceeds from everything1  
and everything becomes everything1      
because that which exists in the        
elements is composed of those elements4 
,sidenote3 ,nature  #ff4  ,nature       
appears to have been the cruel          
stepmother rather than the mother of    
many animals1 and in some cases not the 
stepmother1 but the pitying mother4     
#fg4  ,why did nature not ordain that   
one animal should not live by the death 
of the other8  ,nature1 being inconstant

 and taking pleasure in continually     
creating and making lives and forms1    
because she knows that her earthly      
materials are thereby augmented1 is more
 willing and swift to create than time  
is to destroy2 and so she has ordained  
that many animals shall feed on each    
other4  ,and as even thus her desire is 
not satisfied1 she frequently sends     
forth certain poisonous and pestilential
 vapours upon the increasing multitude  
and congregation of animals1 and        
especially upon men who increase to a   
great extent1 because other animals do  
not feed on them2 and since there is no 
cause1 #be there would follow no effect4
  ,this earth1 therefore1 seeks to lose 
its animal life1 desiring only continual
 reproduction1 and as1 by the logical   
demonstration you adduce1 effects often 
resemble their causes1 animals are the  
image of the life of the world4         
,sidenote3 ,life's ,philosophy  #fh4    
,now you see that the hope and the      
desire of returning home to one's former

 state is like the desire of the moth   
for the light1 and the man who1 with    
constant yearning and joyful expectancy1
 awaits the new spring and the new      
summer1 and every new month and the new 
year1 and thinks that what he longs for 
is ever too late in coming1 and does not
 perceive that he is longing for his own
 destruction4  ,but this desire is the  
quintessence1 the spirit1 of the        
elements1 which1 finding itself captive 
in the soul of the human body1 desires  
always to return to its giver4  ,and ,i 
would have you know that this same      
desire is the quintessence which is     
inseparable from nature1 and that man is
 the model of the world4  ,and such is  
the supreme folly of man that he labours
 so as to labour no more1 and life flies
 from him while he forever hopes to     
enjoy the goods which he has acquired at
 the price of great labour4   ,sidenote3
 ,the ,senses and the ,soul  #fi4  ,the 
soul seems to dwell in the intellect1   
and the intellect appears to dwell in   

that part where all #bf the senses meet 
which is called the brain1 and the brain
 does not pervade the whole body1 as    
many have thought2 on the contrary1 it  
dwells entirely in one part1 because if 
it were all in all and the same in every
 part1 it would not have been necessary 
for the instruments of the senses to    
combine among themselves in one single  
spot2 but rather1 it would have been    
sufficient for the eye to fulfil the    
function of its sensation on the surface
 without transmitting1 by means of the  
optic nerves1 the likeness of its vision
 to the brain1 so that the soul1 for the
 reason given above1 might perceive it  
in the surface of the eye4  ,likewise1  
with regard to the sense of hearing1 it 
would have been sufficient if the voice 
had sounded only in the porous cavity of
 the indurated bone which lies within   
the ear1 without making any further     
transit from this bone to the brain1    
which is its destination and where it   
discourses with common judgement4  ,the 

sense of smell1 too1 is likewise        
compelled by necessity to proceed to the
 intellect2 the sense of touch passes   
through the nerves and is conveyed to   
the brain1 and these nerves diverge with
 infinite ramification in the skin1     
which encloses the limbs of the body and
 the entrails4  ,the nerves convey      
volition and sensation to the muscles1  
and these nerves and the tendons which  
lie between the muscles and the sinews  
give movement to them2 the muscles and  
sinews obey1 and this obedience takes   
effect by the decrease #bg of their     
thickness1 for in swelling their length 
is reduced1 and the tendons which are   
interwoven among the particles of the   
limbs shrink1 and as they extend to the 
tips of the fingers they transmit to the
 brain the cause of the sense of touch  
which they feel4  ,the tendons with     
their muscles obey the nerves as        
soldiers obey their officers1 and the   
nerves obey the brain as the officers   
obey their captain2 thus the joint of   

the bones obeys the tendon1 and the     
tendons obey the muscles1 and the       
muscles obey the nerves1 and the nerves 
obey the brain1 and the brain is the    
dwelling of the soul1 and the memory is 
its ammunition and the perception is its
 refundary4   ,sidenote3 ,of ,sensation 
#gj4  ,the brain is that which perceives
 what is transmitted to it by the other 
senses4  ,the brain moves by means of   
that which is transmitted to it by the  
five senses4  ,motion is transmitted to 
the senses by objects1 and these        
objects1 transmitting their images to   
the five senses1 are transferred by them
 to the perception1 and by the          
perception to the brain2 and there they 
are comprehended and committed to the   
memory1 in which1 according to their    
intensity1 they are more or less firmly 
retained4  ,the thinkers of ancient     
times concluded that the part of man    
which constitutes his intellect is      
caused by an instrument to which the    
other five #bh senses refer everything  

by means of the perception1 and this    
instrument they have named the common   
sense or brain1 and they say that this  
sense is situated in the centre of the  
head4  ,and they have given it this name
 common sense solely because it is the  
common judge of the five other senses1  
that is to say1 sight1 hearing1 touch1  
taste and smell4  ,the common sense is  
stirred by means of the perception which
 is placed between it and the senses4   
,the perception is stirred by means of  
the images of things conveyed to it by  
the external instruments to the senses1 
and these are placed in the centre      
between the external things and the     
perception1 and the senses likewise are 
stirred by objects4  ,surrounding       
objects transmit their images to the    
senses1 and the senses transfer them to 
the perception1 and the perception      
transfers them to the common sense      
7brain71 and by it they are stamped upon
 the memory1 and are there retained in a
 greater or lesser degree according to  

the importance and intensity of the     
impression4  ,the sense which is most   
closely connected with the perception is
 the most rapid in action1 and this     
sense is the eye1 the highest and chief 
of the others2 of this sense alone we   
will treat1 and we will leave the others
 in order not to unduly lengthen our    
matter4   ,sidenote3 ,automatic         
,movements  #ga4  ,nature has ordained  
for man the ministering #bi muscles     
which exercise the sinews1 and by means 
of which the limbs can be moved         
according to the will and desire of the 
brain1 like to officers distributed by a
 ruler over many provinces and towns1   
who represent their ruler in these      
places1 and obey his will4  ,and this   
officer1 who will in a single instance  
have most faithfully obeyed the orders  
he received from his master by word of  
mouth1 will afterwards1 in a similar    
way1 of his own accord fulfil the wishes
 of his master4  ,an example of this can
 be frequently seen in the fingers1     

which learn to perform on an instrument 
the things which the intellect commands1
 and the lesson once learnt they will   
perform it without the aid of the       
intellect4  ,and do not the muscles     
which cause the legs to move perform    
their duty without man being conscious  
of it8   #gb4  ,you will see palsied and
 shivering persons move1 and their      
trembling limbs1 such as their head and 
hands1 quiver1 without the permission of
 the soul1 and the soul1 though it      
expend all its might1 cannot prevent    
these limbs from trembling4  ,the same  
thing occurs in epilepsy or when limbs  
are partially truncated1 as in the case 
of tails of lizards4   ,sidenote3       
,intellect  #gc4  ,it happens that our  
intellect is that which prompts the hand
 to create the features of figures in   
#cj divine aspects until it finds       
satisfaction2 and since the intellect is
 one of the tones of our soul1 by means 
of the soul it composes the form of the 
body where it dwells1 according to its  

volition4  ,and when it has to reproduce
 a human body1 it takes pleasure in     
repeating the body which it originally  
created2 whence it follows that they who
 fall in love are prone to become       
enamoured of what resembles them4       
,sidenote3 ,of the ,senses  #gd4  ,there
 are the four powers3 memory1 intellect1
 sensuality and lust4  ,the first two   
are intellectual1 the others sensual4   
,of the five senses1 sight1 hearing1    
smell are with difficulty prevented2    
touch and taste not at all4  ,taste     
follows smell in the case of dogs and   
other greedy animals4   #ge4  ,why does 
the eye perceive things more clearly in 
dreams than with the imagination when   
one is awake8   ,sidenote3 ,time  #gf4  
,although time is included among        
continuous quantities1 being indivisible
 and immaterial it does not altogether  
fall into the scope of geometry1--by    
which it is divided into figures and    
bodies of infinite variety1 which are   
seen to be continuous inasmuch as they  

are visible and material1--but it agrees
 only with its first principles1 #ca    
i4e4 with the point and the line2 the   
point in time may be compared to an     
instant1 and the line to the length of a
 certain quantity of time4  ,just as the
 point is the beginning and end of a    
line1 so is an instant the beginning and
 end of any given space of time2 and    
just as a line is infinitely divisible1 
so can a given space of time be likewise
 divided1 and as the divisions of the   
line are in proportion to each other1 so
 likewise are the divisions of time4    
#gg4  ,in twelve whole figures the      
cosmography of the miniature world will 
be shown to you in the same manner as   
,ptolemy in his cosmography4  ,and so ,i
 will divide it afterwards into limbs as
 he divided the world into provinces2   
then ,i will explain the function of the
 parts in every direction1 and put      
before your eyes a description of the   
whole figure and substance of man as    
regards his movements by means of his   

limbs4 ,and thus if it please our great 
author ,i will demonstrate the nature of
 man and his habits in the way ,i       
describe his form4   ,sidenote3 ,on the 
,human ,body  #gh4  ,and thou1 ,o man1  
who wilt gaze in this work of mine on   
the marvellous works of nature1 if thou 
thinkest it would be an act of          
wickedness to destroy it1 think how much
 more wicked it is to take the life of a
 man2 and if this his structure appears 
to thee a miraculous work of art1       
remember that #cb it is nothing in      
comparison with the soul which inhabits 
this structure2 for verily1 whatever it 
may be1 it is divine4 ,let it1 then1    
dwell in ,his work and at ,his good     
will1 and let not thy rage or malice    
destroy so great a thing as life1 for he
 who does not value it does not deserve 
it4   ,sidenote3 ,the ,experimental     
,method  #gi4  ,by these rules thou wilt
 be able to distinguish falsehood from  
truth by means of which knowledge men   
aim at possible things with greater     

moderation2 and do not veil thyself in  
ignorance1 for the result of this would 
be that thou wouldst be ineffectual and 
fall into melancholy and despair4       
,sidenote3 ,of ,navigation below the    
,waters  #hj4  ,how by the aid of a     
machine many may remain for some time   
under water4 ,and how and why ,i do not 
describe my method of remaining under   
water and of living long without food2  
and ,i do not publish nor divulge these 
things by reason of the evil nature of  
man1 who would use them for             
assassinations at the bottom of the sea 
and to destroy and sink ships1 together 
with the men on board of them2 and      
notwithstanding ,i will teach other     
things which are not dangerous4444      
,sidenote3 ,of ,physiognomy  #ha4  ,i   
will not dwell on false physiognomy and 
chiromancy #cc because there is no truth
 in them1 and this is manifest because  
chimeras of this kind have no scientific
 foundation4  ,it is true that the      
lineaments of the face partly reveal the

 character of men1 their vices and      
temperaments2 but in the face3 7a7 the  
features which separate the cheeks from 
the lips1 and the nostrils and cavities 
of the eyes1 are strongly marked if they
 belong to cheerful and good-humoured   
men1 and if they are slightly marked it 
denotes that the men to whom they belong
 are given to meditation1 7b7 ,those    
whose features stand out in great relief
 and depth are brutal and bad-tempered1 
and reason little1 7c7 ,those who have  
strongly marked lines between the       
eyebrows are bad-tempered1 7d7 ,those   
who have strongly marked lines on the   
forehead are men full of concealed or   
unconcealed bewailing4  ,and we can     
reason thus about many features4  ,but  
the hand8  ,you will find that whole    
armies perished in the same hour by the 
sword in which no two men had similar   
marks in their hands1 and the same      
argument applies to a shipwreck4        
,sidenote3 ,of ,pain  #hb4  ,nature has 
placed in the front part of man1 as he  

moves1 all those parts which when struck
 cause him to feel pain2 and this is    
felt in the joints of the legs1 the     
forehead and the nose1 and has been so  
devised for the preservation of man1    
because #cd if such pain were not felt  
in these limbs they would be destroyed  
by the many blows they receive4         
,sidenote3 ,why ,plants do not feel     
,pain  #hc4  ,while nature has ordained 
that animals should feel pain in order  
that the instruments which might be     
liable to be maimed or marred by motion 
may be preserved1 plants do not come    
into collision with the objects which   
are before them2 whence pain is not a   
necessity for them1 and therefore when  
they are broken they do not feel pain1  
as animals do4   #hd4  ,lust is the     
cause of generation4  ,appetite is the  
support of life4  ,fear or timidity is  
the prolongation of life4  ,pain is the 
preserver of the instrument 7of the     
human frame74   ,sidenote3 ,fear  #he4  
,just as courage is the danger of life1 

so is fear its safeguard4   ,sidenote3  
,body and ,soul  #hf4  ,let him who     
wishes to see how the soul inhabits its 
body observe what use the body makes of 
its daily habitation2 that is to say1 if
 the soul is full of confusion and      
disorder the body will be kept in       
disorder and confusion by the soul4  #ce
  #hg4  ,the soul can never be corrupted
 with the corruption of the body1 but it
 is like the wind which causes the sound
 of the organ1 and which ceases to      
produce a good effect when a pipe is    
spoilt4   ,sidenote3 ,memory  #hh4      
,every loss which we incur leaves behind
 it vexation in the memory1 save the    
greatest loss of all1 that is1 death1   
which annihilates the memory1 together  
with life4   ,sidenote3 ,spirit  #hi4   
,our body is subject to ,heaven1 and    
,heaven is subject to the ,spirit4      
,sidenote3 ,sense and ,reason  #ij4     
,the senses are earthly2 reason lies    
outside them when in contemplation4     
#ia4  ,where most feeling exists1 there 

amongst martyrs is the greatest martyr4 
#ib4  ,that which can be lost cannot be 
deemed riches4  ,virtue is our true     
wealth and the true reward of its       
possessor2 it cannot be lost1 it never  
deserts us until life leaves us4  ,hold 
property and external riches with fear2 
they often leave their possessor scorned
 and mocked at for having lost them4    
#cf  ,sidenote3 ,flight of ,time  #ic4  
,men wrongly lament the flight of time1 
blaming it for being too swift2 they do 
not perceive that its passage is        
sufficiently long1 but a good memory1   
which nature has given to us1 causes    
things long past to seem present4       
,sidenote3 ,illusions  #id4  ,our       
intellect does not judge events which   
happened at various intervals of time in
 their true proportion1 because many    
things which happened years ago appear  
recent and close to the present1 and    
often recent things appear old and seem 
to belong to our past childhood4  ,the  
eye does likewise with regard to distant

 objects which in the light of the sun  
appear to be close to the eye1 and many 
objects which are close appear to be    
remote4   #ie4  ,let us not lack ways   
and means of dividing and measuring     
these our wretched days1 which we ought 
to take pleasure in spending and living 
not vainly and not without praise1 nor  
without leaving any memory in the minds 
of men1 so that this our miserable      
existence may not be spent in vain4     
,sidenote3 ,virtuous ,life  #if4  ,the  
age which flies glides by in stealth and
 deceives others2 and nothing is more   
swift than the years1 and he who sows   
virtue reaps glory4  #cg  ,sidenote3    
,sleep and ,death  #ig4  ,o sleeper1    
what is sleep8  ,sleep is like unto     
death4  ,why dost thou not work in such 
wise that after death thou mayst have   
the semblance of perfect life1 just as  
during life thou hast in thy sleep the  
semblance of the hapless dead8   #ih4   
,the water you touch in a river is the  
last of that which has gone1 and the    

first of that which is coming3 so it is 
with time present4   #ii4  ,a long life 
is a life well spent4   ,sidenote3 ,life
  #ajj4  ,as a well spent day affords   
happy sleep1 so does a life profitably  
employed afford a happy death4          
,sidenote3 ,time the ,destroyer  #aja4  
,o time1 consumer of things6  ,o envious
 age6  ,thou dost destroy all things1   
and consumest all things with the hard  
teeth of old age1 little by little in a 
slow death4  ,helen1 when she looked in 
her mirror and saw the withered wrinkles
 made in her face by old age1 wept1 and 
wondered why she had twice been         
ravished4  ,o time1 devourer of things6 
,o envious age1 by which all is         
consumed6   #ch  ,sidenote3 ,on         
,fault-finders  #ajb4  ,there exists    
among the foolish a certain sect of     
hypocrites who continually seek to      
deceive themselves and others1 but      
others more than themselves1 though in  
reality they deceive themselves more    
than others4 ,and these are they who    

blame the painters who study on         
feast-days the things which relate to   
the true knowledge of the forms of the  
works of nature1 and sedulously strive  
to acquire knowledge of these things to 
the best of their ability4  ,but such   
fault-finders pass over in silence the  
fact that this is the true manner of    
knowing the ,artificer of such great and
 marvellous things1 and that this is the
 true way in which to love so great an  
,inventor6  ,for great love proceeds    
from the perfect knowledge of the thing 
loved2 and if you do not know it you can
 love it but little or not at all2 and  
if you love it for the gain which you   
anticipate obtaining from it and not for
 its supreme virtue1 you are like the   
dog which wags its tail and shows signs 
of joy1 leaping towards him who can give
 him a bone4  ,but if you knew the      
virtue of a man you would love him      
more--if that virtue was in its place4  
,sidenote3 ,prayer  #ajc4  ,i obey      
,thee1 ,lord1 first for the love which  

in reason ,i ought to bear ,thee2       
secondly because ,thou #ci hast the     
power to shorten or prolong the lives of
 men4   #ajd4  ,thou1 ,o ,god1 dost sell
 us all good things at the price of     
labour4   #aje4  ,and many make a trade 
deceiving the foolish multitude1 and if 
no one comes to unmask their deceits1   
they punish it4   #ajf4                 
,pharisees1--that is to say1 holy       
friars4   #ajg4  ,nothing can be written
 by means of new researches4            
,sidenote3 ,patience  #ajh4  ,patience  
serves against insults as clothes do    
against the cold2 since if you multiply 
your clothes as the cold increases1 the 
cold cannot hurt you4  ,similarly1 let  
thy patience increase under great       
offences1 and they will not be able to  
hurt your feelings4   ,sidenote3 ,advice
 to a ,speaker  #aji4  ,words which do  
not satisfy the ear of the listener will
 always weary or annoy him2 and you will
 often see signs of this in such        
listeners in their frequent yawns4      

,therefore1 you who speak before men    
whose good opinion you seek1 when you   
#dj observe such signs of vexation1     
shorten your speech or vary your        
argument2 and if you do otherwise1 then 
instead of the favour you seek you will 
incur hate and hostility4  ,and if you  
would see what gives pleasure to a man  
speak to him on various themes1 and when
 you see him intent1 without yawning1 or
 contracting his brow1 or performing    
other actions1 then be certain that the 
matter of which you are speaking is such
 as affords him pleasure4   ,sidenote3  
,advice  #aaj4  ,here is a thing which  
the more it is needed the more it is    
rejected3 and this is advice1 which is  
unwillingly heeded by those who most    
need it1 that is to say1 by the         
ignorant4  ,here is a thing which the   
more you fear and avoid it the nearer   
you approach to it1 and this is misery2 
the more you flee from it the more      
miserable and restless you will become4 
,when the work comes up to the standard 

of the judgement1 this is a bad sign for
 the judgement2 and when the work excels
 the standard of the judgement1 this is 
the worst sign1 as occurs when a man    
marvels at having worked so well2 and   
when the standard of the judgement      
exceeds that fulfilled by the work1 this
 is a sign of perfection2 and if the man
 is young and be thus disposed1 he will 
without doubt grow into an excellent    
workman3 he will only accomplish few    
works4  ,but they will #da be of a      
quality which will compel men to        
contemplate their perfection with       
admiration4   ,sidenote3 ,proverbs      
#aaa4  ,nothing should be so greatly    
feared as empty fame4  ,this empty fame 
issues from vices4  ,a broken vase of   
clay can be remodelled1 but this is no  
longer possible when it has been baked4 
,the vow is born when hope dies4  ,the  
beautiful is not always the good4  ,and 
the fine talkers labour under this error
 without any reason4  ,he who wishes to 
grow rich in a day will be hanged in a  

year4  ,the memory of benefits is a     
frail defence against ingratitude4      
,reprove your friend in secret and      
praise him in public4  ,he who fears    
dangers will not perish by them4  ,the  
evil which does me no harm is like the  
good which in no wise avails me4  ,he   
who offends others is not himself       
secure4  ,be not false about the past4  
,folly is the shield of lies1 just as   
unreadiness is the defence of poverty4  
,where there is liberty1 there is no    
rule4  #db  ,here is a thing which the  
more it is heeded the more it is        
spurned1--advice4  ,it is ill to praise1
 and worse to blame1 the thing which you
 do not understand4  ,on ,mount ,etna   
the words freeze in your mouth and you  
make ice of them4  ,threats are the only
 weapons of the threatened man4  ,ask   
advice of him who governs himself well4 
,justice needs power1 intelligence and  
will1 and is like the ,queen ,bee4  ,not
 to punish evil is equivalent to        
authorizing it4  ,he who takes the snake

 by the tail will be bitten by it4  ,the
 pit will fall in upon him who digs it4 
,he who does not restrain voluptuousness
 is in the category of the beasts4  ,you
 can have no dominion greater or less   
than that over yourself4  ,he who thinks
 little errs much4  ,it is easier to    
contend at the first than at the last4  
,no counsel is more sincere than that   
given on ships which are in danger4     
,let him who acts on the advice of the  
young expect loss4  ,you grow in        
reputation like bread in the hands of a 
child4  #dc  ,cannot beauty and utility 
be combined--as appears in citadels and 
men8  ,he who is without fear often     
incurs great losses1 and is often full  
of regret4  ,if you governed your body  
according to virtue you would not live  
in this world4  ,where good fortune     
enters1 envy lays siege to her and      
attacks her1 and when she departs sorrow
 and regret remain behind4  ,when beauty
 exists side by side with ugliness1 the 
one seems more powerful1 owing to the   

presence of the other4  ,he who walks   
straight rarely falls4  ,o miserable    
race of man6 of how many things you make
 yourself the slave for the sake of     
money6  ,the worst evil which can befall
 the artist is that his work should     
appear good in his own eyes4  ,to speak 
well of a bad man is the same as        
speaking ill of a good man4  ,truth     
ordains that lying tongues shall be     
punished by the lie4  ,he who does not  
value life does not deserve it4  ,the   
beautiful works of mortals pass and do  
not endure4  ,labour flies with fame    
almost hidden in its arm4  ,the gold in 
ingots is refined in the fire4  #dd     
,the shuttle says3 ,i will continue to  
move until the cloth is woven4          
,everything that is crooked is          
straightened4  ,great ruin proceeds from
 a slight cause4  ,fine gold is         
recognized when it is tested4  ,the     
image will correspond to the die4  ,the 
wall will fall on him who scrapes it4   
,ivy lives long4  ,to the traitor1 death

 is life1 because if he makes use of    
others he is no longer believed4  ,when 
fortune comes seize her in front firmly1
 because behind she is bald4  ,constancy
 means1 not he who begins1 but he who   
perseveres4  ,i do not yield to         
obstacles4  ,every obstacle is overcome 
by resolve4  ,he who is chained to a    
star does not change4   ,sidenote3      
,truth  #aab4  ,fire destroys           
falsehood1--that is to say1             
sophistry1--and rehabilitates truth1    
scattering the darkness4  ,fire must be 
represented as the consumer of all      
sophistry and the revealer of truth1    
because it is light and scatters        
darkness which conceals all essences4   
,fire destroys all sophistry1--that is  
to say1 deceit1--and preserves truth    
alone1 which is gold4  #de ,truth cannot
 be concealed in the end1 dissimulation 
is of no avail4  ,dissimulation is      
frustrated before so great a judge4     
,falsehood puts on a mask4  ,there is   
nothing hidden under the sun4  ,fire    

must represent truth because it destroys
 all sophistry and lies1 and the mask is
 for sophistry and lies1 which conceal  
truth4   #aac4  ,rather privation of    
limbs than weariness of doing good4     
,the power of using my limbs shall fail 
me before the power of being useful4    
,rather death than weariness4  ,i cannot
 be satiated with serving4  ,i do not   
weary of giving help4  ,no amount of    
work is sufficient to weary me4 ,this is
 a carnival motto3 ,sine lassitudine4   
,hands in which ducats and precious     
stones abound like snow never grow weary
 of serving1 but such a service is for  
its utility only and not for our profit4
  ,nature has formed me thus4           
,sidenote3 ,ingratitude  #aad4  ,this   
shall be placed in the hand of          
ingratitude3 ,the wood nourishes the    
fire that consumes it4  ,when the sun1  
the scatterer of darkness1 shines1 you  
put out the light which for you in      
particular1 and for your need and       
convenience1 expelled the darkness4     

,sidenote3 ,physiological ,inferiority  
of ,man  #aae4  ,i have found that in   
the composition of the human body as    
compared with the bodies of #df animals 
the senses are less subtle and coarser2 
it is thus composed of less ingenious   
machinery and of cells less capable of  
receiving the power of senses4  ,i have 
seen that in the lion the sense of smell
 is connected with the substance of the 
brain and descends through the nostrils 
which form an ample receptacle for it2  
and it enters into a great number of    
cartilaginous cells which are provided  
with many passages in order to receive  
the brain4  ,a large part of the head of
 the lion is given up to the sockets of 
the eyes1 and the optic nerves are in   
immediate contact with the brain2 the   
contrary occurs in man1 because the     
sockets of the eyes occupy a small      
portion of the head1 and the optic      
nerves are subtle and long and weak1 and
 owing to the weakness of their action  
we see little by day and less at night2 

and the animals above mentioned see     
better at night than in the daytime2 and
 the proof of this is that they seek    
their prey at night and sleep during the
 daytime1 as do also the nocturnal      
birds4   ,sidenote3 ,man's ,ethical     
,inferiority  #aaf4  ,thou hast         
described him king of animals1 but ,i   
would rather say1 king of beasts1 thou  
being the greatest--for hast thou not   
slain them in order that they may give  
thee their children to glut thy greed   
with which thou hast striven to make a  
sepulchre for all animals8  ,and ,i     
would say still more if ,i might speak  
the whole truth4  ,but let us #dg       
confine ourselves to human matters1     
relating one supreme infamy1 which is   
not to be found among the animals of the
 earth2 because among these you will not
 find animals who eat their young1      
except when they are utterly foolish    
7and there are few indeed of such among 
them71 and this occurs only among the   
beasts of prey1 such as the lions1 and  

leopards1 panthers1 lynxes1 cats and the
 like1 which sometimes feed on their    
young2 but thou1 besides thy children1  
dost devour thy father1 thy mother1 thy 
brother and thy friends2 and not        
satisfied with this1 thou goest forth to
 hunt on the islands of others1 seizing 
other men and these half naked 444 thou 
fattenest and chasest them down thy own 
throat4  ,now does not nature produce   
enough vegetables for thee to satisfy   
thyself8  ,and if thou art not content  
with vegetables1 canst thou not by a    
mixture of them make infinite compounds 
as ,platina wrote1 and other writers on 
food8   ,sidenote3 ,man in the ,animal  
,world  #aag4  ,the description of man1 
including that of such creatures        
belonging almost to the same species1   
such as apes1 monkeys and the like1 of  
which there are many4   #aah4  ,the way 
of walking in man is similar in all     
cases to the universal way of walking in
 four-footed animals1 because1 just as  
they move their feet #dh crosswise1 like

 a trotting horse1 so man moves his four
 limbs crosswise1 that is to say1 in    
walking he puts forward his right foot  
simultaneously with his left arm1 and so
 on vice versa4   #aai4  ,write a       
special treatise to describe the        
movements of four-footed animals1 among 
which is man1 who in his childhood also 
walks on four feet4   ,sidenote3        
,fragment of a ,letter  #abj4  ,there is
 one who having promised me much less   
than his due1 and being disappointed of 
his presumptuous desire1 has tried to   
deprive me of all my friends2 and       
finding them wise and not pliable to his
 will1 he has threatened me that he     
would bring accusations against me and  
alienate my benefactors from me3 hence  
,i have informed ,your ,lordship of     
this1 so that this man1 who wishes to   
sow the usual scandals1 may not find a  
soil fit for sowing the thoughts and    
deeds of his evil nature2 and that when 
he tries to make ,your ,lordship the    
tool of his infamous and malicious      

nature he may be disappointed of his    
desire4   ,sidenote3 ,giacomo of ,pupil 
of ,leonardo  #aba4  ,on the #bc;d of   
,april1 #adij1 ,i began this book2 and  
started again on the horse4  ,giacomo   
came to live with me on ,saint ,mary    
,magdalen's day in #adij2 #di he was ten
 years old4  ,he was a thief1 a liar1   
obstinate1 and a glutton4  ,on the      
second day ,i had two shirts made for   
him1 a pair of socks and a jerkin1 and  
when ,i placed the money aside to pay   
for these things1 he stole it out of the
 purse and ,i could never force him to  
confess the fact1 though ,i was quite   
certain of it--#d lire4  ,on the        
following day ,i went to sup with       
,giacomo ,andrea1 and this same ,giacomo
 supped for two and did mischief for    
four1 since he broke three bottles1     
spilled the wine1 and after this came to
 sup where ,i444  ,item3 on the #gth of 
,september he stole a silver point1     
worth twelve soldi1 from ,marco1 who was
 living with me1 and took it from his   

studio2 and when ,marco had looked for  
it for some time he found it hidden in  
,giacomo's box--lire #a1 soldi #b4      
,item3 on the #bfth of the following    
,january1 being in the house of ,messer 
,galeazzo di ,san ,severino1 in order to
 arrange the festivity of his joust1 and
 certain henchmen having undressed to   
try on the costumes of rustics who were 
to take part in the aforesaid festivity1
 ,giacomo took the purse of one of them1
 which was on the bed with other        
clothes1 and stole the money he found in
 it--#b lire1 #d soldi4  ,item3 ,maestro
 ,agostino of ,padua gave me while ,i   
was in the same house a ,turkish hide to
 have a pair of shoes made of it1 and   
,giacomo stole this from me within a    
month and sold it to a cobbler for #bj  
soldi1 with which money by his own      
confession he bought sweets of aniseed4 
,item3 #ej again1 on the #b;d of ,april1
 ,giovanni ,antonio left a silver point 
on one of his drawings1 and ,giacomo    
stole it2 it was worth #bd soldi1--#a   

lire1 #d soldi4  ,the first year a      
cloak1 #b lire2 six shirts1 #d lire2    
three doublets1 #f lire3 four pairs of  
socks1 #g lire1 #h soldi4   #abb4  ,and 
in this case ,i know that ,i shall make 
not a few enemies1 since no one will    
believe what ,i say of him2 because     
there are but few whom his vices have   
disgusted1 indeed they only disgusted   
those men whose natures are contrary to 
such vices2 and many hate their fathers 
and break off friendship with those who 
reprove their vices1 and they will have 
no examples brought up against them1 nor
 tolerate any advice4  ,and if you meet 
with any one who is good and virtuous   
drive him not away from you1 do him     
honour1 so that he may not have to flee 
from you and hide in hermitages1 or     
caverns and other solitary spots1 in    
order to escape from your treachery2 and
 if there be such an one do him honour1 
because these are your gods upon earth1 
they deserve statues from you and images
 444 but remember that you are not to   

eat their images1 as is practised still 
in some parts of ,india1 where1 when    
images have performed some miracle1 the 
priests cut them in pieces 7since they  
are of wood7 and distribute them among  
the people of the country1 not #ea      
without payment1 and each one grates his
 portion very fine and puts it upon the 
first food he eats2 and thus they       
believe that they have eaten their saint
 by faith1 who will preserve them from  
all perils4  ,what is thy opinion1 ,o   
man1 of thy own species8  ,art thou so  
wise as thou believest to be8  ,are     
these things to be done by men8         
,sidenote3 ,pleasure and ,pain  #abc4   
,this represents pleasure together with 
pain because one is never separated from
 the other2 they are depicted back to   
back because they are opposed to each   
other2 they are represented in one body 
because they have the same basis1       
because the source of pleasure is labour
 mingled with pain1 and the pain issues 
from the various evil pleasures4 ,and it

 is therefore represented with a reed in
 its right hand which is ineffectual and
 devoid of strength1 and the wounds     
inflicted by it are poisonous4  ,in     
,tuscany such reeds are placed to       
support beds1 to signify that this is   
the place of idle dreams1 that here a   
great part of life is consumed1 here    
much useful time is wasted1 that is1 the
 morning hours when the mind is sober   
and rested and the body disposed to     
start on fresh labours2 there1 again1   
many vain pleasures are enjoyed by the  
mind1 which pictures to itself          
impossible things1 and by the body1     
which indulges in those pleasures that  
are so often the cause of the #eb       
failing of life2 and for this reason the
 reed is used as their support4         
,sidenote3 ,brain and ,soul  #abd4  ,the
 spirit returns to the brain whence it  
had departed1 with a loud voice and     
uttering these words3  ,o blissful and  
fortunate spirit1 whence comest thou8   
,i have known this man well1 against my 

will4  ,he is a receptacle of villainy1 
he is a very heap of the highest        
ingratitude combined with all the other 
vices4 ,but why should ,i tire myself   
with vain words8  ,nothing is to be     
found in him save the accumulation of   
all sins1 and if there is to be found   
among them any that possess good1 they  
will not be treated differently than ,i 
have been by other men2 in short ,i have
 come to the conclusion that they are   
bad if they are enemies1 and worse if   
they are friends4   ,sidenote3 ,of the  
,eye  #abe4  ,the eye1 which reflects   
the beauty of the universe to those who 
see1 is so excellent a thing that he who
 consents to its loss deprives himself  
of the spectacle of the works of nature2
 and it is owing to this spectacle1     
effected by means of the eye1 which     
enables the soul to behold the various  
objects of nature1 that the soul is     
content to remain in the prison of the  
body2 but he who loses his eyesight     
leaves the soul in a dark prison1 where 

#ec all hope of once more beholding the 
sun1 the light of the whole world1 is   
lost4444  ,and how many are they who    
feel great hatred for the darkness of   
night1 although it is brief4  ,oh6 what 
would they do were they constrained to  
abide in this darkness during the whole 
of their life8  ,certainly there is no  
one who would not rather lose his       
hearing or his sense of smell than his  
eyesight1 and the loss of hearing       
includes the loss of all sciences which 
find expression in words2 and this loss 
a man would incur solely so as not to be
 deprived of the sight of the beauty of 
the world which consists in the surfaces
 of bodies artificial as well as        
natural1 which are reflected in the     
human eye4   ,sidenote3 ,the ,eye in    
,animal ,life  #abf4  ,animals suffer   
greater loss in losing their sight than 
their hearing for many reasons3 firstly1
 because it is by means of their sight  
that they find the food which is their  
nourishment1 and is necessary for all   

animals2 secondly1 because by means of  
sight the beauty of created things is   
apprehended1 especially those which lead
 to love1 while he who is born blind    
cannot apprehend such beauty by hearing1
 because he has never received any      
knowledge as to what is beauty of any   
kind4 ,there remains hearing1 by which  
,i mean only the human voice and speech2
 they contain the names of all things   
whatsoever4  ,it is possible to live    
happily without the knowledge of these  
#ed words1 as is seen in those who are  
born deaf1 that is to say1 the dumb1 who
 take delight in drawing4   ,sidenote3  
,ascension of ,monte ,rosa  #abg4  ,i   
say that the azure we see in the        
atmosphere is not its true colour1 but  
is caused by warm moisture evaporated in
 minute and insensible atoms which the  
solar rays strike1 rendering them       
luminous against the darkness of the    
infinite night of the fiery region which
 lies beyond and includes them4  ,and   
this may be seen1 as ,i saw it1 by him  

who ascends ,mounboso 7,monte ,rosa71 a 
peak of the ,alps which separates       
,france from ,italy4  ,the base of this 
mountain gives birth to the four large  
rivers which in four different          
directions water the whole of ,europe2  
and no mountain has its base at so great
 a height as this4  ,it rises to such a 
height that it almost lifts itself up   
above the clouds2 snow seldom falls on  
it1 but only hail in summer1 when the   
clouds are at their greatest height1 and
 this hail is preserved there so that   
were it not for the absorption of the   
rising and falling clouds1 which does   
not occur twice in an age1 a great      
quantity of ice would be piled up there 
by the hail1 which in the middle of     
,july ,i found to be very considerable2 
and ,i saw above me the dark air1 and   
the sun which struck the mountain shone 
far lighter than in the plains below1   
because a lesser quantity of atmosphere 
lay between the summit of the mountain  
and the sun4  #ee  ,sidenote3           

,prophecies  #abh4  ,men will           
communicate with each other from the    
most distant countries1 and reply4      
,many will abandon their own habitations
 and take with them their own goods1 and
 go and inhabit other countries4  ,men  
will pursue the thing which they most   
greatly fear2 that is to say1 they will 
be miserable in order to avoid falling  
into misery4  ,men standing in separate 
hemispheres will converse with each     
other1 embrace each other1 and          
understand each other's language4       
#abi4  ,we should not desire the        
impossible4     #ei  ,,ii  ,,thoughts   
,,on ,,art       99 99       99         
,sidenote3 ,painting declines when aloof
 from ,nature  ,the painter's work will 
be of little merit if he takes the      
painting of others as his standard1 but 
if he studies from nature he will       
produce good fruits2 as is seen in the  
case of the painters of the age after   
the ,romans1 who continued to imitate   
one another and whose art consequently  

declined from age to age4  ,after these 
came ,giotto the ,florentine1 who was   
born in the lonely mountains1 inhabited 
only by goats and similar animals2 and  
he1 being drawn to his art by nature1   
began to draw on the rocks the doings of
 the goats of which he was the keeper2  
and thus he likewise began to draw all  
the animals which he met with in the    
country3 so that after long study he    
surpassed not only all the masters of   
his age1 but all those of many past     
centuries4  ,after him art relapsed once
 more1 because all artists imitated the 
painted pictures1 and thus from century 
to century it went on declining1 until  
,tomaso the ,florentine1 called         
,masaccio1 proved by his perfect work   
that they who set up for themselves a   
standard other than nature1 the mistress
 of all masters1 labour in vain4  #fj   
,thus ,i wish to say1 in regard to these
 mathematical matters1 that they who    
merely study the masters and not the    
works of nature are the grandchildren1  

and not the children1 of nature1 the    
mistress of good masters4  ,i abhor the 
supreme folly of those who blame the    
disciples of nature in defiance of those
 masters who were themselves her pupils4
   ,sidenote3 ,its ,origin  #b4  ,the   
first picture was a single line1 drawn  
round the shadow of a man cast by the   
sun on the wall4   #c4  ,vastness of the
 field of painting3 ,all that is visible
 is included in the science of painting4
   ,sidenote3 ,defence of ,painting  #d4
  ,with due lamentation ,painting       
complains that it has been expelled from
 the liberal arts1 because it is the    
true daughter of nature and is practised
 by means of the most worthy of the     
senses4  ,whence wrongly1 ,o writers1   
you have excluded painting from the     
liberal arts1 since it not only includes
 in its range the works of nature1 but  
also infinite things which nature never 
created4   #e4  ,because writers have   
had no knowledge of the science of      
painting1 they have not been able to #fa

 describe its gradations and parts1 and 
since painting itself does not reveal   
itself nor its artistic work in words1  
it has remained1 owing to ignorance1    
behind the sciences mentioned above1 but
 it has thereby lost nothing of its     
divinity4  ,and truly it is not without 
reason that men have failed to honour   
it1 because it does honour to itself    
without the aid of the speech of others1
 just as do the excellent works of      
nature4  ,and if the painters have not  
described the art of painting1 and      
reduced it to a science1 the fault must 
not be imputed to painting and it is no 
less noble on that account1 since few   
painters profess a knowledge of letters1
 as their life would not be long enough 
for them to acquire such knowledge4     
,therefore we ask1 ,is the virtue of    
herbs1 stones and plants non-existent   
because men have been ignorant of it8   
,certainly not2 but we will say that    
these herbs remained noble in themselves
 without the aid of human tongues or    

letters4   ,sidenote3 ,painting  #f4  ,a
 science is more useful in proportion as
 its fruits are more widely understood1 
and thus1 on the other hand1 it is less 
useful in proportion as it is less      
widely understood4  ,the fruits of      
painting can be apprehended by all the  
populations of the universe because its 
results are subject to the power of     
sight1 and it does not pass by the ear  
to the brain1 but by the same channel by
 which #fb sight passes4 ,therefore it  
needs no interpreters of diverse        
tongues1 as letters do1 and it has      
instantly satisfied the human race in   
the same manner as the works of nature  
have done4  ,and not only the human     
race1 but other animals2 as was shown in
 a picture representing the father of a 
family to whom little children still in 
the cradle gave caresses1 as did the dog
 and the cat in the same house2 and it  
was a wonderful thing to see such a     
sight4   #g4  ,the arts which admit of  
exact reproduction are such that the    

disciple is on the same level as the    
creator1 and so it is with their fruits4
 ,these are useful to the imitator1 but 
are not of such high excellence as those
 which cannot be transmitted as an      
inheritance like other substances4      
,among these painting is the first4     
,painting cannot be taught to him on    
whom nature has not conferred the gift  
of receiving such knowledge1 as         
mathematics can be taught1 of which the 
disciple receives as much as the master 
gives him2 it cannot be copied1 as      
letters can be1 in which the copy equals
 the original2 it cannot be stamped1 in 
the same way as sculpture1 in which the 
impression is in proportion to the      
source as regards the quality of the    
work2 it does not generate countless    
children1 as do printed books4  ,it     
alone remains noble1 it alone confers   
honour on its author and remains        
precious #fc and unique1 and does not   
beget children equal to itself4  ,and it
 is more excellent by reason of this    

quality than by reason of those which   
are everywhere proclaimed4  ,now do we  
not see the great monarchs of the ,east 
going about veiled and covered up from  
the fear of diminishing their glory by  
the manifestation and the divulgation of
 their presence8 and do we not see that 
the pictures which represent the divine 
deity are kept covered up with          
inestimable veils8 their unveiling is   
preceded by great sacred solemnities    
with various chants and diverse music1  
and when they are unveiled1 the vast    
multitude of people who are there       
flocked together1 immediately prostrate 
themselves and worship and invoke those 
whom such pictures represent that they  
may regain their lost holiness and win  
eternal salvation1 just as if the deity 
were present in the flesh4  ,this does  
not occur in any other art or work of   
man4  ,and if you say that is owing to  
the nature of the subject depicted      
rather than to the genius of the        
painter1 the answer is that the mind of 

man could satisfy itself equally well in
 this case1 were the man to remain in   
bed and not make pilgrimages to places  
which are perilous and hard of access1  
as we so often see is the case4  ,but if
 such pilgrimages continually exist1    
what is then their unnecessary cause8   
,you will certainly admit that it is an 
image of this kind1 and all the writings
 in the world could not succeed in      
representing the #fd semblance and the  
power of such a deity4  ,therefore it   
appears that this deity takes pleasure  
in the pictures and is pleased that it  
should be loved and revered1 and takes a
 greater delight in being worshipped in 
that rather than in any other semblance 
of itself1 and by reason of this it     
bestows grace and gifts of salvation    
according to the belief of those who    
meet together in such a place4          
,sidenote3 ,painting excels all the     
,works of ,man  #h4  ,the eye1 which is 
called the window of the soul1 is the   
principal means by which the brain can  

most abundantly and splendidly          
contemplate the infinite works of       
nature2 and the ear is the next in      
order1 which is ennobled by hearing the 
recital of the things seen by the eye4  
,if you1 historians and poets1 or       
mathematicians1 had not seen things with
 the eyes1 you could not report of them 
in writing4  ,if thou1 ,o poet1 dost    
tell a story with thy painting pen1 the 
painter will more easily give           
satisfaction in telling it with his     
brush and in a manner less tedious and  
more easily understood4  ,and if thou   
callest painting mute poetry1 the       
painter can call poetry blind painting4 
,now consider which is the greater loss1
 to be blind or dumb8  ,though the poet 
is as free as the painter in his        
creations and compositions1 they are not
 so satisfactory to men as paintings1   
because if poetry is able to describe   
forms1 actions and places in words1 the 
painter deals with the very #fe         
semblance of forms in order to represent

 them4  ,now consider which is nearer to
 man1 the name of man or the image of   
man8  ,the name of man varies in diverse
 countries1 but death alone changes his 
form4  ,if thou wast to say that        
painting is more lasting1 ,i answer that
 the works of a coppersmith1 which time 
preserves longer than thine or ours1 are
 more eternal still4  ,nevertheless     
there is but little invention in it1 and
 painting on copper with colours of     
enamel is far more lasting4  ,we by our 
art can be called the grandsons of ,god4
  ,if poetry deals with moral           
philosophy1 painting deals with natural 
philosophy2 if poetry describes the     
action of the contemplative mind1       
painting represents the effect in motion
 of the action of the mind2 if poetry   
terrifies people with the pictures of   
,hell1 painting does the same by        
depicting the same things in action4    
,if a poet challenges the painter to    
represent beauty1 fierceness1 or an     
evil1 an ugly or a monstrous thing1     

whatever variety of forms he may produce
 in his way1 the painter will cause     
greater satisfaction4  ,are there not   
pictures to be seen so like reality that
 they deceive men and animals8          
,sidenote3 ,painting creates ,reality   
#i4  ,the imagination is to the effect  
as the shadow to the opaque body which  
causes the shadow1 and the proportion is
 the same between poetry and painting4  
,because poetry produces its results in 
the #ff imagination of the reader1 and  
painting produces them in a concrete    
reality outside the eye1 so that the eye
 receives its images just as if they    
were the works of nature2 and poetry    
produces its results without images1 and
 they do not pass to the brain through  
the channel of the visual faculty1 as in
 painting4   #aj4  ,painting represents 
to the brain the works of nature with   
greater truth and accuracy than speech  
or writing1 but letters represent words 
with greater truth1 which painting does 
not do4  ,but we say that the science   

which represents the works of nature is 
more wonderful than that which          
represents the works of the artificer1  
that is to say1 the works of man1 which 
consist of words--such as poetry and the
 like--which issue from the tongue of   
man4   ,sidenote3 ,the ,painter goes to 
,nature  #aa4  ,painting ministers to a 
nobler sense than poetry1 depicts the   
forms of the works of nature with       
greater truth than poetry2 and the works
 of nature are nobler than the words    
which are the works of man1 because     
there is the same proportion between the
 works of man and those of nature as    
there is between man and ,god4          
,therefore it is a more worthy thing to 
imitate the works of nature1 which are  
the true images embodied in reality1    
than to imitate the actions and the     
words of men4  #fg  ,and if thou1 ,o    
poet1 wishest to describe the works of  
nature by thine unaided art1 and dost   
represent various places and the forms  
of diverse objects1 the painter         

surpasses thee by an infinite degree of 
power2 but if thou wishest to have      
recourse to the aid of other sciences1  
apart from poetry1 they are not thy own2
 for instance1 astrology1 rhetoric1     
theology1 philosophy1 geometry1         
arithmetic and the like4  ,thou art not 
then a poet any longer4  ,thou          
transformest thyself1 and art no longer 
that of which we are speaking4  ,now    
seest thou not that if thou wishest to  
go to nature1 thou reachest her by the  
means of science1 deduced by others from
 the effects of nature8  ,and the       
painter1 through himself alone1 without 
the aid of aught appertaining to the    
various sciences1 or by any other means1
 achieves directly the imitation of the 
things of nature4  ,by painting1 lovers 
are attracted to the images of the      
beloved to converse with the depicted   
semblance4  ,by painting whole          
populations are led with fervent vows to
 seek the image of the deities1 and not 
to see the books of poets which         

represent the same deities in speech2 by
 painting animals are deceived4  ,i once
 saw a picture which deceived a dog by  
the image of its master1 which the dog  
greeted with great joy2 and likewise ,i 
have seen dogs bark at and try to bite  
painted dogs2 and a monkey make a number
 of antics in front of a painted monkey4
  ,i have seen swallows fly and alight  
on painted #fh iron-works which jut out 
of the windows of buildings4            
,sidenote3 ,superiority of ,painting to 
,philosophy  #ab4  ,painting includes in
 its range the surface1 colour and shape
 of anything created by nature2 and     
philosophy penetrates into the same     
bodies and takes note of their essential
 virtue1 but it is not satisfied with   
that truth1 as is the painter1 who      
seizes hold of the primary truth of such
 bodies because the eye is less prone to
 deception4   ,sidenote3 ,painting      
,poetry  #ac4  ,poetry surpasses        
painting in the representation of words1
 and in the representation of actions   

painting excels poetry2 and painting is 
to poetry as actions are to words1      
because actions depend on the eye and   
words on the ear2 and thus the senses   
are in the same proportion one to       
another as the objects on which they    
depend2 and on this account ,i consider 
painting to be superior to poetry4  ,but
 since those who practised painting were
 for long ignorant as to how to explain 
its theory1 it lacked advocates for a   
considerable time2 because it does not  
speak itself1 but reveals itself and    
ends in action1 and poetry ends in      
words1 which in its vainglory it employs
 for self-praise4   ,sidenote3 ,painting
 is ,mute ,poetry  #ad4  ,what poet will
 place before thee in words1 ,o #fi     
lover1 the true semblance of thy idea   
with such truth as will the painter8    
,who is he who will show thee rivers1   
woods1 valleys and plains1 which will   
recall to thee the pleasures of the     
past1 with greater truth than the       
painter8 ,and if thou sayest that       

painting is mute poetry in itself1      
unless there be some one to speak for it
 and tell what it represents--seest thou
 not1 then1 that thy book is on a lower 
plane8  ,because even if it have a man  
to speak for it1 nothing of the subject 
which is related can be seen1 as it is  
seen when a picture is explained4  ,and 
the pictures1 if the action represented 
and the mental attributes of the figures
 are in the true proportion one to      
another1 will be understood in the same 
way as if they spoke4   #ae4  ,painting 
is mute poetry1 and poetry is blind     
painting4  ,therefore these two forms of
 poetry1 or rather these two forms of   
painting1 have exchanged the senses     
through which they should reach the     
intellect4 ,because if they are both of 
them painting1 they must reach the brain
 by the noblest sense1 namely1 the eye2 
if they are both of them poetry1 they   
must reach the brain by the less noble  
sense1 that is1 the hearing4  ,therefore
 we will appoint the man born deaf to be

 judge of painting1 and the man born    
blind to be judge of poetry2 and if in  
the painting the movements are          
appropriate #gj to the mental attributes
 of the figures which is are engaged in 
any kind of action1 there is no doubt   
that the deaf man will understand the   
action and intentions of the figures1   
but the blind man will never understand 
what the poet shows1 and what           
constitutes the glory of the poetry2    
since one of the noblest functions of   
its art is to describe the deeds and the
 subjects of stories1 and adorned and   
delectable places with transparent      
waters in which the green recesses of   
their course can be seen as the waves   
disport themselves over meadows and fine
 pebbles1 and the plants which are      
mingled with them1 and the gliding      
fishes1 and similar descriptions1 which 
might just as well be made to a stone as
 to a man born blind1 since he has never
 seen that which composes the beauty of 
the world1 that is1 light1 darkness1    

colour1 body1 shape1 place1 distance1   
propinquity1 motion and rest1 which are 
the ten ornaments of nature4  ,but the  
deaf man1 lacking the less noble sense1 
although he has at the same time lost   
the gift of speech1 since never having  
heard words spoken he never has been    
able to learn any language1 will        
nevertheless perfectly understand every 
attribute of the human body better than 
a man who can speak and hear2 and       
likewise he will know the works of      
painters and what is represented in     
them1 and the action which is           
appropriate to such figures4  #ga       
,sidenote3 ,painting is ,mute ,poetry   
#af4  ,painting is mute poetry1 and     
poetry is blind painting1 and both      
imitate nature to the best of their     
powers1 and both can demonstrate moral  
principles1 as ,apelles did in his      
,calumny4  ,and since painting ministers
 to the most noble of the senses1 the   
eye1 a harmonious proportion ensues from
 it1 that is to say1 that just as from  

the concord of many diverse voices at   
the same moment there ensues a          
well-proportioned harmony which will    
please the sense of hearing to such an  
extent that the listeners in dizzy      
admiration are like men half ravished of
 their senses1 still greater will be the
 effect of the beautiful proportions of 
a celestial face in a picture from whose
 proportions a harmonious concord will  
ensue1 which delights the eye in one    
moment1 just as music delights the ear4 
,and if this harmonious beauty is shown 
to one who is the lover of the woman    
from whom such great beauty has been    
copied1 he will most certainly be struck
 dizzy with admiration and incomparable 
joy superior to that afforded by all the
 other senses4  ,but with regard to     
poetry1 which in order to afford the    
representation of a perfect beauty is   
obliged to describe each separate part  
in detail1--a representation which in   
painting produces the harmony described 
above1--no further charm is produced    

than would occur in music if each voice 
#gb were to be heard separately at      
various intervals of time1 whence no    
concord would ensue2 just as if we      
wished to show a countenance bit by bit1
 always covering up the parts already   
shown1 forgetfulness would prevent the  
production of any harmonious concord1   
since the eye could not apprehend the   
parts with its visual faculty at the    
same moment4  ,the same thing occurs in 
the beauty of any object created by the 
poet1 for as its parts are related      
separately1 at separate times the memory
 receives no harmony from it4           
,sidenote3 ,the ,impression of ,painting
  #ag4  ,painting reveals itself        
immediately to thee with the semblance  
given it by its creator1 and affords to 
the chief of the senses as great a      
delight as any object created by nature4
  ,and the poet in this case reveals the
 same objects to the brain by the       
channel of the hearing1 the inferior    
sense1 and affords the eye no more      

pleasure than it derives from anything  
which is related4  ,now consider what a 
difference there is between hearing the 
recital of a thing which in the course  
of time gives pleasure to the eye1 and  
perceiving it with the same velocity    
with which we apprehend the works of    
nature4  ,and in addition to the fact   
that a long interval of time is         
necessary to read the works of the      
poets1 it often occurs that they are not
 understood1 and it is necessary to make
 diverse #gc comments on them1 and it is
 exceedingly rare that the commentators 
are agreed as to the meaning of the     
poet2 and often the readers peruse but a
 small portion of their works1 owing to 
lack of time4  ,but the works of the    
painter are immediately understood by   
those who behold them4   #ah4  ,painting
 manifests its essence to thee in an    
instant of time1--its essence by the    
visual faculty1 the very means by which 
the perception apprehends natural       
objects1 and in the same duration of    

time1--and in this space of time the    
sense-satisfying harmony of the         
proportion of the parts composing the   
whole is formed4  ,and poetry apprehends
 the same things1 but by a sense        
inferior to that of the eyesight1 which 
bears the images of the objects named to
 the perception with greater confusion  
and less speed4  ,not in such wise acts 
the eye 7the true intermediary between  
the object and the perception71 for it  
immediately communicates the true       
semblance and image of what is          
represented before it with the greatest 
accuracy2 whence that proportion arises 
called harmony1 which with sweet concord
 delights the sense in the same way as  
the harmony of diverse voices delights  
the ear2 and this harmony is less worthy
 than that which delights the eye1      
because for every part of it that is    
born a part dies1 and it dies as fast as
 it is born4  ,this #gd cannot occur in 
the case of the eye2 because if thou    
presentest a beautiful living mortal to 

the eye1 composed of a harmony of fair  
limbs1 its beauty is not so transient   
nor so quickly destroyed as that of     
music2 on the contrary it has permanent 
duration1 and allows thee to behold and 
consider it2 and it is not reborn as in 
the case of music which is played many  
times over1 nor will it weary thee3 on  
the contrary1 thou becomest enamoured   
with it1 and the result it produces is  
that all the senses1 together with the  
eye1 would wish to possess it1 and it   
seems that they would wish to compete   
with the eye3 it appears that the mouth 
desires it for itself1 if the mouth can 
be considered as a sense2 the ear takes 
pleasure in hearing its beauty2 the     
sense of touch would like to penetrate  
into all its pores2 the nose also would 
like to receive the air it exhales4     
,time in a few years destroys this      
harmony1 but this does not occur in the 
case of beauty depicted by the painter1 
because time preserves it for long2 and 
the eye1 as far as its function is      

concerned1 receives as much pleasure    
from the depicted as from the living    
beauty2 touch alone is lacking to the   
painted beauty1--touch1 which is the    
elder brother of sight2 which after it  
has attained its purpose does not       
prevent the reason from considering the 
divine beauty4  ,and in this case the   
picture copied from the living beauty   
acts for the greater part as a          
substitute2 and the #ge description of  
the poet cannot accomplish this4--the   
poet who is now set up as a rival to the
 painter1 but does not perceive that    
time sets a division between the words  
in which he describes the various parts 
of the beauty1 and that forgetfulness   
intervenes and divides the proportions  
which he cannot name without great      
prolixity2 he cannot compose the        
harmonious concord which is formed of   
divine proportions4  ,and on this       
account beauty cannot be described in   
the same space of time in which a       
painted beauty can be seen1 and it is a 

sin against nature to attempt to        
transmit by the ear that which should be
 transmitted by the eye4  ,what prompts 
thee1 ,o man1 to abandon thy habitations
 in the city1 to leave thy parents and  
friends1 and to seek rural spots in the 
mountains and valleys1 if it be not the 
natural beauty of the world1 which1 if  
thou reflectest1 thou dost enjoy solely 
by means of the sense of sight8 ,and if 
the poet wishes to be called a painter  
in this connection also1 why didst thou 
not take the descriptions of places made
 by the poet and remain at home without 
exposing thyself to the heat of the sun8
  ,oh6 would not this have been more    
profitable and less fatiguing to thee1  
since this can be done in the cool      
without motion and danger of illness8   
,but the soul could not enjoy the       
benefit of the eyes1 the windows of its 
dwelling1 and it could not note the     
character of joyous #gf places2 it could
 not see the shady valleys watered by   
the sportiveness of the winding rivers2 

it could not see the various flowers1   
which with their colours make a harmony 
for the eye1 and all the other objects  
which the eye can apprehend4  ,but if   
the painter in the cold and rigorous    
season of winter can evoke for thee the 
landscapes1 variegated and otherwise1 in
 which thou didst experience thy        
happiness2 if near some fountain thou   
canst see thyself1 a lover with thy     
beloved1 in the flowery fields1 under   
the soft shadow of the budding boughs1  
wilt thou not experience a greater      
pleasure than in hearing the same effect
 described by the poet8  ,here the poet 
answers1 admitting these arguments2 but 
he maintains that he surpasses the      
painter1 because he causes men to speak 
and reason in diverse fictions1 in which
 he invents things which do not exist1  
and that he will incite men to take     
arms1 and describe the heavens1 the     
stars1 nature1 and the arts and         
everything4  ,to which we reply that    
none of these things of which he speaks 

is his true profession2 but if he wishes
 to speak and make orations1 it can be  
shown that he is surpassed by the orator
 in this province2 and if he speaks of  
astrology1 that he has stolen the       
subject of the astrologer2 and in the   
case of philosophy1 of the philosopher2 
and that in reality poetry has no true  
position and merits no more             
consideration than a shopkeeper #gg who 
collects goods made by various workmen4 
,as soon as the poet ceases to represent
 by means of words the phenomena of     
nature1 he then ceases to act as a      
painter1 because if the poet leaves such
 representation and describes the       
flowery and persuasive speech of him to 
whom he wishes to give speech1 he then  
becomes an orator1 and neither a poet   
nor a painter2 and if he speaks of the  
heavens he becomes an astrologer1 and a 
philosopher and a theologian if he      
discourses of nature or ,god2 but if he 
returns to the description of any object
 he would rival the painter1 if with    

words he could satisfy the eye as the   
painter does4  ,but the spirit of the   
science of painting deals with all      
works1 human as well as divine1 which   
are terminated by their surfaces1 that  
is1 the lines of the limits of bodies by
 means of which the sculptor is required
 to achieve perfection in his art4  ,she
 with her fundamental rules1 i4e4       
drawing1 teaches the architect how to   
work so that his building may be        
pleasant to the eye2 she teaches the    
makers of diverse vases1 the goldsmiths1
 weavers1 embroiderers2 she has found   
the characters with which diverse       
languages find expression2 she has given
 symbols to the mathematicians2 she has 
taught geometry its figures1 and        
instructed the astrologers1 the makers  
of machines and engineers4   ,sidenote3 
,poet and ,painter  #ai4  ,the poet says
 that his science consists of #gh       
invention and rhythm1 and this is the   
simple body of poetry1 invention as     
regards the subject matter and rhythm as

 regards the verse1 which he afterwards 
clothes with all the sciences4  ,to     
which the painter rejoins that he is    
governed by the same necessities in the 
science of painting1 that is to say1    
invention and measure 7fancy as regards 
the subject matter which he must invent1
 and measure as regards the matters     
painted71 so that they may be in        
proportion1 but that he does not make   
use of three sciences2 on the contrary  
it is rather the other sciences that    
make use of painting1 as1 for instance1 
astrology1 which effects nothing without
 the aid of perspective1 the principal  
link of painting1--that is1 mathematical
 astronomy and not fallacious astrology 
7let those who by reason of the         
existence of fools make a profession of 
it1 forgive me74 ,the poet says he      
describes an object1 that he represents 
another full of beautiful allegory2 the 
painter says he is capable of doing the 
same1 and in this respect he is also a  
poet4  ,and if the poet says he can     

incite men to love1 which is the most   
important fact among every kind of      
animal1 the painter can do the same1 all
 the more so because he presents the    
lover with the image of his beloved2 and
 the lover often does with it what he   
would not do with the writer's          
delineation of the same charms1 i4e4    
talk with it and kiss it2 so great is   
the painter's influence on the minds of 
men that he incites them to love and #gi
 become enamoured of a picture which    
does not represent any living woman4    
,and if the poet pleases the sense by   
means of the ear1 the painter does so by
 the eye1 which is the superior sense4  
,i will enlarge no further on this theme
 save to say that if a good painter were
 to represent the fury of a battle1 and 
if the poet were to describe one1 and   
both representations were put before the
 public together1 you will see before   
which of the two most of the spectators 
will stop1 to which of the two they will
 pay most attention1 which of the two   

will be the most praised and give the   
greater satisfaction4  ,without any     
doubt1 the painting1 being infinitely   
the most beautiful and useful1 will     
please the most4  ,write the name of    
,god in some spot1 and set up ,his image
 opposite1 and you will see which will  
be the most reverenced4  ,while painting
 embraces in itself all the forms of    
nature1 you have nothing save words1    
which are not universal1 like forms4    
,if you have the effects of the         
representation1 we have the             
representation of the effects4  ,take a 
poet who describes the charms of a woman
 to her lover1 and a painter who        
represents her1 and you will see whither
 nature leads the enamoured critic4     
,certainly the proof should rest on the 
verdict of experience4  ,you have       
classed painting among the mechanical   
arts1 but1 truly1 if painters were as   
apt at praising their own works in      
writing as you are1 it would not lie    
under the stigma #hj of so unhonoured an

 name4  ,if you call it mechanical      
because it is by manual work and that   
the hand represents the conception of   
the imagination1 you writers put down   
with the pen the conceptions of your    
mind4  ,and if you say that it is       
mechanical because it is done for money1
 who is more guilty of this error--if   
error it can be called--than you8  ,if  
you lecture in the schools1 do you not  
go to whomsoever rewards you most8 ,do  
you perform any work without some pay8  
,although ,i do not say this to blame   
such opinions1 because all labour       
expects its reward2 and if a poet were  
to say3 ,i will devise with my fancy a  
work which shall be pregnant with       
meaning1 the painter can do the same1 as
 ,apelles did when he painted ,the      
,calumny4   ,sidenote3 ,king ,matthias  
the ,poet  #bj4  ,on the birthday of    
,king ,matthias1 a poet brought him a   
work made in praise of the royal        
birthday for the benefit of the world1  
and a painter presented him with a      

portrait of his lady-love4  ,the king   
immediately shut the book of the poet   
and turned to the picture1 and remained 
gazing on it with profound admiration4  
,then the poet1 greatly slighted1 said3 
,o king1 read1 read1 and thou wilt hear 
something of far greater substance than 
a dumb picture6  ,then the king1 hearing
 himself blamed for contemplating a mute
 object1 said3 ,o poet1 be silent1 thou 
knowest not what thou #ha sayest2 this  
picture gratifies a nobler sense than   
thy work1 which is for the blind4  ,give
 me an object which ,i can see and touch
 and not only hear1 and blame not my    
choice in having placed thy work beneath
 my elbow1 while ,i hold the work of the
 painter with both my hands before my   
eyes1 because my very hands have chosen 
to serve a worthier sense than that of  
hearing4  ,and as for my self ,i        
consider that the same proportion exists
 between the art of the painter and that
 of the poet as that which exists       
between the two senses on which they    

respectively depend4  ,knowest thou not 
that our soul is composed of harmony1   
and harmony can only be begotten in the 
moments when the proportions of objects 
are simultaneously visible and audible8 
,seest thou not that in thine art there 
is no harmony created in a moment1 and  
that1 on the contrary1 each part follows
 from the other in succession1 and the  
second is not born before its           
predecessor dies4  ,for this reason ,i  
consider thy creation to be considerably
 inferior to that of the painter1 simply
 because no harmonious concord ensues   
from it4  ,it does not satisfy the mind 
of the spectator or the listener1 as the
 harmony of the perfect features which  
compose the divine beauty of this face  
which is before me2 for the features    
united all together simultaneously      
afford me a pleasure which ,i consider  
to be unsurpassed by any other thing on 
the earth which is made by man4  #hb    
,sidenote3 ,value of the ,visible       
,universe  #ba4  ,there is no one so    

foolish who if offered the choice       
between everlasting blindness and       
deafness would not immediately elect to 
lose both his hearing and sense of smell
 rather than to be blind4  ,since he who
 loves his sight is deprived of the     
beauty of the world and all created     
things1 and the deaf man loves only the 
sound made by the percussion of the air1
 which is an insignificant thing in the 
world4  ,thou sayest that science       
increases in nobility in proportion as  
the subjects with which it deals are    
more elevated1 and1 for this reason1 a  
false rendering of the being of ,god is 
better than the portrayal of a less     
worthy object2 and on this account we   
will say that painting1 which deals     
alone with the works of ,god1 is worth  
more than poetry1 which deals solely    
with the lying imaginings of human      
devices4   ,sidenote3 ,poet and ,painter
  #bb4  ,thou sayest1 ,o painter1 that  
worship is paid to thy work1 but impute 
not this power to thyself1 but to the   

subject which such a picture represents4
  ,here the painter makes answer3 ,o    
thou poet1 who sayest that thou also art
 an imitator1 why dost thou not         
represent with thy words objects of such
 a nature that thy writings which       
contain these words may be worshipped   
also8  ,but nature has favoured the     
painter more than the poet1 #hc and it  
is fair that the works of the more      
greatly favoured one should be more     
honoured than those of the less favoured
 one4  ,therefore let us praise him who 
with words satisfies the hearing1 and   
him who by painting affords perfect     
content to the eyes2 but let the praise 
given to the worker in words be less1   
inasmuch as they are accidental and     
created by a less worthy author than the
 works of nature of which the painter is
 the imitator4  ,and the existence of   
these works is confined within the forms
 of their surfaces4   #bc4  ,since we   
have concluded that the utmost extent of
 the comprehension of poetry is for the 

blind1 and that of painting for the     
deaf1 we will say that the value of     
painting exceeds that of poetry in      
proportion as painting gratifies a      
nobler sense than poetry does1 and this 
nobility has been proved to be equal to 
that of three other senses1 because we  
elect to lose our sense of hearing1     
smell and touch rather than our         
eyesight4  ,for he who loses his sight  
is deprived of the beauty of the        
universe1 and is like to one who is     
confined during his lifetime in a tomb1 
in which he enjoys life and motion4     
,now seest thou not that the eye        
comprehends the beauty of the whole     
world8  ,it is the head of astrology2 it
 creates cosmography2 it gives counsel  
and correction to all the human arts2 it
 impels #hd men to seek diverse parts of
 the world2 it is the principle of      
mathematics2 its science is most        
certain2 it has measured the height and 
the magnitude of the stars2 it has      
discovered the elements and their       

abodes2 it has been able to predict the 
events of the future1 owing to the      
course of the stars2 it has begotten    
architecture and perspective and divine 
painting4  ,o most excellent above all  
the things created by ,god6  ,what      
praise is there which can express thy   
nobility8  ,what peoples1 what tongues1 
are they who can perfectly describe thy 
true working8  ,it is the window of the 
human body1 through which the soul gazes
 and feasts on the beauty of the world2 
by reason of it the soul is content with
 its human prison1 and without it this  
human prison is its torment2 and by     
means of it human diligence has         
discovered fire by which the eye wins   
back what the darkness has stolen from  
it4  ,it has adorned nature with        
agriculture and pleasant gardens4  ,but 
what need is there for me to indulge in 
long and elevated discourse8  ,what     
thing is there which acts not by reason 
of the eye8  ,it impels men from the    
,east to the ,west2 it has discovered   

navigation2 and in this it excels       
nature1 because the simple products of  
the earth are finite and the works which
 the eye makes over to the hands are    
infinite1 as the painter shows in his   
portrayal of countless forms of animals1
 herbs1 plants and places4  #he         
,sidenote3 ,music the ,sister of        
,painting  #bd4  ,music should be given 
no other name than the sister of        
painting1 inasmuch as it is subject to  
the hearing1--a sense inferior to the   
eye1--and it produces harmony by the    
unison of its proportioned parts1 which 
are brought into operation at the same  
moment and are constrained to come to   
life and die in one or more harmonic    
times2 and time is1 as it were1 the     
circumference of the parts which        
constitute the harmony1 in the same way 
as the outline constitutes the          
circumference of limbs whence human     
beauty emanates4  ,but painting excels  
and lords over music because it does not
 die as soon as it is born1 as occurs   

with music1 the less fortunate2 on the  
contrary1 it continues to exist and     
reveals itself to be what it is1 a      
single surface4  ,o marvellous science1 
thou givest lasting life to the perished
 beauty of mortals1 which are thus made 
more enduring than the works of nature1 
for these undergo forever the changes of
 time1 and time leads them to inevitable
 old age6  ,and this science is to      
divine nature as its works are to the   
works of nature1 and on this account it 
is worshipped4   ,sidenote3 ,painting   
,music  #be4  ,the most worthy thing is 
that which satisfies the most worthy    
sense2 therefore painting1 which        
satisfies the sense of sight1 is more   
worthy than #hf music1 which merely     
satisfies the hearing4  ,the most worthy
 thing is that which endures longest2   
therefore music1 which is continually   
dying as soon as it is born1 is less    
worthy than painting1 which lasts       
eternally with the colours of enamel4   
,the most excellent thing is that which 

is the most universal and contains the  
greatest variety of things2 therefore   
painting must be set above all other    
arts1 because it contains all the forms 
which exist and also those which are not
 in nature1 and it should be glorified  
and exalted more than music1 which deals
 with the voice only4  ,with it images  
are made to the gods2 around it divine  
worship is conducted1 of which music is 
a subservient ornament2 by means of it  
pictures are given to lovers of their   
beloved2 by it the beauties are         
preserved which time1 and nature the    
mother1 render fitful2 by it we retain  
the images of famous men4  ,and if thou 
wert to say that by committing music to 
writing you render it eternal1 we do the
 same with letters4  ,therefore1 since  
thou hast included music among the      
liberal arts1 thou must either exclude  
it1 or include the art of letters4  ,and
 if thou wast to say3 ,painting is used 
by base men1 in the same way is music   
spoilt by him who knows it not4  ,if    

thou sayest that sciences which are not 
mechanical are mental1 ,i will answer   
that painting is mental4  ,and just as  
music and geometry deal with the        
proportions of continuous quantities1   
and #hg arithmetic deals with           
discontinuous quantities1 painting deals
 with all quantities and the qualities  
of the proportions of shadows1 lights   
and distances1 in its perspective4      
,sidenote3 ,painter and ,musician  #bf4 
,the musician says that his art can be  
compared with that of the painter       
because by the art of the painter a body
 of many members is composed1 and the   
spectator apprehends its grace in as    
many harmonious rhythms 444 as there are
 times in which it lives and dies2 and  
by these rhythms 444 its grace plays    
with the soul1 which dwells in the body 
of the spectator4  ,but the painter     
replies that the body composed of human 
limbs does not afford the delectable    
harmonious rhythms in which beauty must 
live and die1 but renders it permanent  

for many years1 and is of such great    
excellence that it preserves the life of
 this harmony of concordant limbs which 
nature with all her force could not     
preserve4  ,how many pictures have      
preserved the semblance of divine beauty
 of which time or death had in a brief  
space destroyed the living example3 and 
the work of the painter has become more 
honoured than that of nature1 his       
master6  ,if thou1 ,o musician1 sayest  
that painting is mechanical because it  
is wrought by the work of the hands1    
music is wrought by the mouth1 but #hh  
not by the tasting faculties of the     
mouth2 just and as the hand is employed 
indeed in the case of painting1 but not 
for its faculties of touch4  ,words are 
less worthy than actions4  ,but thou1   
writer of science1 dost thou not copy   
with thy hand1 and write what is in thy 
mind1 as the painter does8  ,and if thou
 wast to say that music is formed of    
proportion1 by proportion have ,i       
wrought painting1 as thou shalt see4    

,sidenote3 ,poet ,painter and ,musician 
#bg4  ,there is the same difference     
between the representation of the       
embodied works of the painter and those 
of the poet as there is between complete
 and dismembered bodies1 because the    
poet in describing the beauty or the    
ugliness of any body reveals it to you  
limb by limb and at diverse times1 and  
the painter shows the whole at the same 
time4  ,the poet cannot express in words
 the true likeness of the limbs which   
compose a whole1 as can the painter1 who
 places it before you with the truth of 
nature4  ,and the same thing befalls the
 poet as the musician1 who sings by     
himself a song composed for four        
singers2 and he sings the treble first1 
then the tenor1 then the alto and then  
the bass1 whence there results no grace 
of harmonious concord such as harmonious
 rhythms produce4  ,and the poet is like
 a beautiful countenance which reveals  
itself to you feature by feature1 that  
by so doing you may never be #hi        

satisfied by its beauty1 which consists 
of the divine proportion of the limbs   
united one with another1 and these      
compose of themselves and at one time   
the divine harmony of this union of     
limbs1 and often deprives the gazer of  
his liberty4  ,music1 again1 by its     
harmonious rhythm1 produces the sweet   
melodies formed by its various voices1  
and their harmonious division is lacking
 to the poet2 and although poetry enters
 into the abode of the intellect by the 
channel of the hearing1 as does music1  
the poet cannot describe the harmony of 
music1 because it is not in his power to
 say various things in one and the same 
moment as can the harmonious concord of 
painting1 which is composed of various  
members which exist simultaneously1 and 
the beauty of these parts is apprehended
 at the same time1 individually and     
collectively1--collectively with regard 
to the whole1 individually with regard  
to the component parts of which the     
whole is formed2 and for this reason the

 poet is1 as far as the representation  
of bodily things is concerned1 greatly  
inferior to the painter1 and as far as  
invisible things are concerned he is far
 behind the musician4  ,but if the poet 
borrows the aid of the other sciences1  
he can appear at the fair like the other
 merchants1 bearers of divers goods made
 by many artificers2 and the poet does  
this when he borrows the science of     
others1 such as that of the orator1 the 
philosopher1 the astrologer1 the        
cosmographer and #ij the like2 and these
 sciences are altogether alien to the   
poet4 ,therefore he is an agent who     
brings together diverse persons in order
 to strike a bargain2 and if you wish to
 know the true function of the poet1 you
 will find that he is no other than an  
assembler of goods stolen from other    
sciences1 with which he makes a         
deceptive mixture1 or more honestly     
said1 a fictitious mixture4  ,and with  
regard to this fiction the poet is free 
to compete with the painter1 since it   

constitutes the least part of the       
painting4   #bh4  ,the painter emulates 
and competes with nature4   ,sidenote3  
,painting a second ,creation  #bi4  ,he 
who blames painting blames nature1      
because the works of the painter        
represent the works of nature1 and for  
this reason he who blames in this       
fashion lacks feeling4   ,sidenote3 ,the
 ,painter ,lord of ,all  #cj4  ,if the  
painter wishes to see beautiful things  
which will enchant him he is able to    
beget them2 if he wishes to see         
monstrous things which terrify1 or      
grotesque and laughable things1 or truly
 piteous things1 he can dispose of all  
these2 if he wishes to evoke places and 
deserts1 shady or dark retreats in the  
hot season1 he represents them1 and     
likewise warm places in the cold season4
  ,if he wishes valleys1 if he wishes to
 descry a great #ia plain from the high 
summits of the mountains1 and if he     
wishes after this to see the horizon of 
the sea1 he can do so2 and from the low 

valleys he can gaze on the high         
mountains1 or from the high mountains he
 can scan the low valleys and shores2   
and in truth all quantities of things   
that exist in the universe1 either real 
or imaginary1 he has first in his mind  
and then in his hands2 and these things 
are of so great excellence that they    
beget a harmonious concord in one       
glance1 as do the things of nature4     
#ca4  ,we can safely say that those     
people are under a delusion who call    
that painter a good master who can only 
draw well a head or a figure4 ,certainly
 there is no great merit if1 after      
studying a single thing during a whole  
lifetime1 you attain to a certain degree
 of perfection in it4  ,but knowing1 as 
we do1 that painting includes and       
comprehends all the works produced by   
nature1 or brought about by the         
fortuitous action of man1 and in fact   
everything that the eye can see1 he     
seems to me to be a poor master who can 
only do one thing well4  ,now seest thou

 not how many and diverse acts are      
performed by men8  ,seest thou not how  
many various animals there are1 and     
likewise trees1 plants and flowers2 what
 a variety of mountainous or level      
places1 fountains1 rivers1 cities1      
public and private buildings1 #ib       
instruments suitable for human use2 how 
many diverse costumes and ornaments and 
arts8  ,all these things should be      
considered of equal effect and value    
when used by the man who can be called a
 good painter4   ,sidenote3 ,painting   
and ,nature  #cb4  ,if you despise      
painting1 which is the only imitator of 
the visible works of nature1 you will   
certainly despise a subtle invention    
which with philosophy and subtle        
speculation apprehends the qualities of 
forms1 backgrounds1 places1 plants1     
animals1 herbs and flowers1 which are   
surrounded by light and shade4  ,and    
truly this is knowledge and the         
legitimate offspring of nature1 because 
painting is begotten by nature4 ,but to 

be correct1 we will say that it is the  
grandchild of nature1 because all       
visible things are begotten by nature1  
and these her children have begotten    
painting4  ,therefore we shall rightly  
say that painting is the grandchild of  
nature and related to ,god4   #cc4      
,were a master to boast that he could   
remember all the forms and effects of   
nature1 he would certainly appear to me 
to be graced with great ignorance1      
inasmuch as these effects are infinite  
and our memory is not sufficiently      
capacious to retain them4  ,therefore1  
,o painter1 beware lest in thee the lust
 of gain should overcome the honour of  
thy art1 for the acquisition of honour  
is a much #ic greater thing than the    
glory of wealth4  ,thus1 for this and   
for other reasons which could be given1 
first strive in drawing to express to   
the eye in a manifest shape the idea and
 the fancy originally devised by thy    
imagination2 then go on adding or       
removing until thou art satisfied2 then 

arrange men as models1 clothed or nude1 
according to the intention of thy work1 
and see that1 as regards dimension and  
size1 in accordance with perspective    
there is no portion of the work which is
 not in harmony with reason and natural 
effects1 and this will be the way to win
 honour in thy art4   ,sidenote3        
,painting  ,sculpture  #cd4  ,i have    
myself practised the art of sculpture as
 well as that of painting1 and ,i have  
practised both arts in the same degree4 
,i think1 therefore1 that ,i can give an
 impartial opinion as to which of the   
two is the most difficult3 the most     
perfect requires the greater talent1 and
 is to be preferred4  ,in the first     
place sculpture requires a certain      
light1 that is to say1 a light from     
above1 and painting carries everywhere  
with it its light and shade2 sculpture  
owes its importance to light and shade4 
,the sculptor is aided in this by the   
relief which is inherent in sculpture1  
and the painter places the light and    

shade1 by the accidental quality of his 
art1 in the places where nature would   
naturally produce it4  ,the sculptor    
cannot diversify his work by the various
 colours of objects2 painting #id is    
complete in every respect4  ,the        
perspective of the sculptor appears to  
be altogether untrue2 that of the       
painter can give the idea of a distance 
of a hundred miles beyond the picture4  
,the sculptors have no aerial           
perspective2 they can neither represent 
transparent bodies nor reflections1 nor 
bodies as lustrous as mirrors1 and other
 translucent objects1 neither mists nor 
dark skies1 nor an infinity of objects  
which it would be tedious to enumerate4 
,the advantage of sculpture is that it  
is provided with a better defence       
against the ravages of time1 although a 
picture painted on thick copper and     
covered over with white enamel1 painted 
with enamel colours and then put in the 
fire again and baked1 is equally        
resistant4  ,such a work as far as      

permanence is concerned exceeds         
sculpture4  ,they may say that where an 
error is made it is not easy to correct 
it4  ,it is poor reasoning to try and   
prove that the irremediability of an    
oversight renders the work more         
honourable4  ,but ,i say to you that it 
will prove more difficult to mend the   
mind of the master who commits such     
errors than to repair the work he has   
spoilt4  ,we know well that an          
experienced and competent artist will   
not make mistakes of this kind2 on the  
contrary1 acting on sound rules1 he will
 remove so little at a time that his    
work will be brought to a successful    
close4  ,again1 the sculptor1 if he     
works in clay or wax1 can remove and    
add1 and when the work is finished it   
can be easily #ie cast in bronze1 and   
this is the last and most permanent     
operation of sculpture1 inasmuch as that
 which is merely of marble is liable to 
destruction1 but this is not the case   
with bronze4  ,therefore the picture    

painted on copper1 which with the       
methods of painting can be reduced or   
added to1 is like bronze1 which when it 
was in the state of a wax model could be
 reduced or added to4 ,and if sculpture 
in bronze is durable1 this copper and   
enamel work is more imperishable still2 
and while the bronze remains black and  
ugly1 this is full of various and       
delectable colours of infinite variety1 
as we have described above4  ,if you    
wish to confine the discussion to       
painting on panel ,i am content to      
pronounce between it and sculpture1     
saying1 that painting is the more       
beautiful1 the more imaginative and the 
more copious1 and that sculpture is more
 durable1 but has no other advantage4   
,sculpture with little labour shows what
 in painting seems to be a miraculous   
thing to do3 to make impalpable objects 
appear palpable1 to give the semblance  
of relief to flat objects1 and distance 
to objects that are near4  ,in fact     
painting is full of infinite resources  

of which sculpture cannot dispose4      
#ce4  ,sculpture is not a science1 but a
 mechanical art1 because it causes the  
brow of the artist who practises it to  
sweat1 and wearies his body2 and for #if
 such an artist the simple proportions  
of the limbs1 and the nature of         
movements and attitudes1 are all that is
 essential1 and there it ends1 and shows
 to the eye what it is1 and it does not 
cause the spectator to wonder at its    
nature1 as painting does1 which in a    
plane by its science shows vast         
countries and far-off horizons4   #cf4  
,the only difference between painting   
and sculpture is that the sculptor      
accomplishes his work with the greater  
bodily fatigue1 and the painter with the
 greater mental fatigue4  ,this is      
proved by the fact that the sculptor in 
practising his art is obliged to exert  
his arms and to strike and shatter the  
marble or other stone1 which remains    
over and above what is needed for the   
figure which it contains1 by manual     

exercise1 accompanied often by profuse  
sweating1 mingled with dust and         
transforming itself into dirt2 and his  
face is plastered and powdered with the 
dust of the marble1 so that he has the  
appearance of a baker1 and he is covered
 with minute chips1 and it appears as if
 snow had fallen on him1 and his        
dwelling is dirty and full of chips and 
the dust of stone4  ,the contrary occurs
 in the case of the painter1--we are    
speaking of excellent painters and      
sculptors1--since the painter with great
 leisure sits before his work well      
clothed1 and handles the light brush    
dipped in lovely colours4  ,he wears #ig
 what garments he pleases2 his dwelling 
is full of beautiful pictures1 and it is
 clean2 sometimes he has music or       
readers of diverse and pleasant works1  
which1 without any noise of hammers or  
other confused sounds1 are heard with   
great pleasure4   #cg4  ,there can be no
 comparison between the talent1 art and 
theory of painting and that of          

sculpture1 which leaves perspective out 
of account1--perspective which is       
produced by the quality of the material 
and not of the artist4  ,and if the     
sculptor says that he cannot restore the
 superabundant substance which has once 
been removed from his work1 ,i answer   
that he who removes too much has but    
little understanding and is no master4  
,because if he has mastered the         
proportions he will not remove anything 
unnecessarily2 therefore we will say    
that this disadvantage is inherent in   
the artist and not in the material4     
,but ,i will not speak of such men1 for 
they are spoilers of marble and not     
artists4  ,artists do not trust to the  
judgement of the eye1 because it is     
always deceptive1 as is proved by him   
who wishes to divide a line into two    
equal parts by the eye1 and is often    
deceived in the experiment2 wherefore   
the good judges always fear--a fear     
which is not shared by the ignorant--to 
trust to their own judgement1 and on    

this account they proceed by continually
 checking the #ih height1 thickness and 
breadth of each part1 and by so doing   
accomplish no more than their duty4     
,but painting is marvellously devised of
 most subtle analyses1 of which         
sculpture is altogether devoid1 since   
its range is of the narrowest4 ,to the  
sculptor who says that his science is   
more lasting than that of painting1 ,i  
answer that this permanence is due to   
the quality of the material and not to  
that of the sculptor1 and the sculptor  
has no right to give himself the credit 
for it1 but he should let it redound to 
nature which created the material4      
#ch4  ,painting has a wider intellectual
 range and is more wonderful and greater
 as regards its artistic resources than 
sculpture1 because the painter is by    
necessity constrained to amalgamate his 
mind with the very mind of nature and to
 be the interpreter between nature and  
art1 making with art a commentary on the
 causes of nature's manifestations which

 are the inevitable result of its laws2 
and showing in what way the likenesses  
of objects which surround the eye       
correspond with the true images of the  
pupil of the eye1 and showing among     
objects of equal size which of them will
 appear more or less dark1 or more or   
less clear2 and among objects equally   
low which of them will appear more or   
less low2 or among those of the same    
height which of them will appear more or
 less high2 or among objects of equal   
size #ii placed at various distances one
 from the other1 why some will appear   
more clearly than others4  ,and this art
 embraces and comprehends within itself 
all visible things1 which sculpture in  
its poverty cannot do3 that is1 the     
colours of all objects and their        
gradations2 it represents transparent   
objects1 and the sculptor will show thee
 natural objects without the painter's  
devices2 the painter will show thee     
various distances with the gradations of
 colour producing interposition of the  

air between the objects and the eye2 he 
will show thee the mists through which  
the character of objects is with        
difficulty descried2 the rains which    
clouded mountains and valleys bring with
 them2 the dust which is inherent to and
 follows the contention between these   
forces2 the rivers which are great or   
small in volume2 the fishes disporting  
themselves on the surface or at the     
bottom of these waters2 the polished    
pebbles of various colours which are    
collected on the washed sands at bottom 
of rivers surrounded by floating plants 
beneath the surface of the water2 the   
stars at diverse heights above us2 and  
in the same manner other innumerable    
effects to which sculpture cannot       
attain4   #ci4  ,sculpture lacks the    
beauty of colours1 the perspective of   
colours2 it lacks perspective and it    
confuses the limits of objects remote   
from the #ajj eye1 inasmuch as it       
represents the limits of objects that   
are near in the same way as those of    

distant objects2 it does not represent  
the air which1 interposed between the   
eye and the remote object1 conceals that
 object but as the veils in draped      
figures1 which reveal the naked flesh   
beneath them2 it cannot represent the   
small pebbles of various colours beneath
 the surface of the transparent waters4 
,sidenote3 ,to the ,painter  #dj4  ,and 
thou1 painter1 who desirest to achieve  
the highest excellence in practice1     
understand that unless thou build it on 
the solid foundations of nature1 thou   
shalt reap but scant honour and gain by 
thy work2 and if thy foundation is      
sound1 thy works shall be many and good1
 and bring great honour to thee1 and be 
of great profit4   #da4  ,when the work 
exceeds the ideal of the artist1 the    
artist makes scant progress2 and when   
the work falls short of his ideal it    
never ceases to improve1 unless avarice 
be an obstacle4   #db4  ,he is a poor   
disciple who does not surpass his       
master4   ,sidenote3 ,counsels  #dc4    

,he is a poor master whose work is      
exalted in his #aja own opinion1 and he 
is on the road to perfection in art     
whose work falls short of his ideal4    
#dd4  ,small rooms or dwellings help the
 mind to concentrate itself2 large rooms
 are a source of distraction4   #de4    
,the painter should be solitary1 and    
take note of what he sees and reason    
with himself1 making a choice of the    
more excellent details of the character 
of any object he sees2 he should be like
 unto the mirror1 which takes the       
colours of the objects it reflects4     
,and this proceeding will seem to him to
 be a second nature4   ,sidenote3 ,the  
,painter in his ,studio  #df4  ,in order
 that the favourable disposition of the 
mind may not be injured by that of the  
body1 the painter or the draughtsman    
should be solitary1 and especially when 
he is occupied with those speculations  
and thoughts which continually rise up  
before the eye1 and afford materials to 
be treasured by the memory4  ,if thou   

art alone1 thou wilt belong to thyself  
only3 if thou hast but one companion1   
thou wilt only half belong to thyself1  
and ever less in proportion to the      
indiscretion of his conduct2 and if thou
 hast many companions1 thou wilt        
encounter #ajb the same disadvantage4   
,and if thou shouldst say3 ,i will      
follow my own inclination1 ,i will      
withdraw into seclusion in order the    
better to study the forms of natural    
objects--,i say thou wilt with          
difficulty be able to do this1 because  
thou wilt not be able to refrain from   
constantly listening to their chatter2  
and1 not being able to serve two        
masters1 thou wilt play the part of a   
companion ill1 and still worse will be  
the evil effect on thy studies in art4  
,and if thou sayest3 ,i will withdraw   
myself1 so that their words cannot reach
 and disturb me--,i1 with regard to     
this1 say thou wilt be regarded as a    
madman2 but seest thou not that by so   
doing thou wilt be alone also8          

,sidenote3 ,advice to the ,painter  #dg4
  ,the mind of the painter must be like 
unto a mirror1 which ever takes the     
colour of the object it reflects1 and   
contains as many images as there are    
objects before it4  ,therefore realize1 
,o painter1 that thou canst not succeed 
unless thou art the universal master of 
imitating by thy art every variety of   
nature's forms1 and this thou canst not 
do save by perceiving them and retaining
 them in thy mind2 wherefore when thou  
walkest in the country let thy mind play
 on various objects1 observe now this   
thing and now that thing1 making a store
 of various objects selected and chosen 
from those of lesser value4  ,and thou  
shalt not do as some painters1 who1 when
 weary of plying #ajc their fancy1      
dismiss their work from their mind and  
take exercise in walking for relaxation1
 but retain fatigue in the mind1 which1 
though they see various objects1 does   
not apprehend them1 but often when they 
meet friends and relations and are      

saluted by them1 they are no more       
conscious of them than if they had met  
empty air4   ,sidenote3 ,precepts  #dh4 
,and thou1 ,o painter1 seek to bring    
about that thy works may attract those  
who gaze upon them and arrest them with 
great admiration and delight2 and so    
that they may not attract and forthwith 
repel them1 as the air does to him who  
in the night season leaps naked from his
 bed to gaze upon the cloudy and serene 
sky and forthwith is driven back by the 
cold1 and returns to the bed whence he  
rose4  ,but let thy works be like the   
air which draws men from their beds in  
the hot season1 and retains them to     
taste with delight the cool of the      
summer2 and he who will do well by his  
art will not strive to be more skilful  
than learned1 nor let greed get the     
better of glory4  ,seest thou not among 
human beauties that it is the beautiful 
faces which stop the passers-by1 and not
 the richness of their ornaments8  ,and 
this ,i say to thee who adornest thy    

figures with gold and other rich        
ornaments3 ,seest thou not splendid1    
youthful beauties1 who diminish their   
excellence by the excess and elaboration
 of their #ajd ornaments8  ,hast thou   
not seen women of the mountains dressed 
in rough and poor clothes richer in     
beauty than those who are adorned8      
,make no use of the affected            
arrangements and headdresses such as    
those adopted by loutish maids1 who1 by 
placing one lock of hair more on one    
side than the other1 credit themselves  
with having committed a great enormity1 
and think that the bystanders will      
forget their own thoughts to talk of    
them alone1 and to blame them4 ,for such
 persons have always the looking-glass  
and the comb1 and the wind1 which       
ruffles elaborate headdresses1 is their 
worst enemy4  ,in thy heads let the hair
 sport with the wind thou depictest     
around youthful countenances1 and adorn 
them gracefully with various turns1 and 
do not as those who plaster their faces 

with gum and make the faces seem as if  
they were of glass4  ,this is a human   
folly which is always on the increase1  
and the mariners do not satisfy it who  
bring arabic gums from the ,east1 so as 
to prevent the smoothness of the hair   
from being ruffled by the wind1--but    
they pursue their investigations still  
further in this direction4   #di4  ,i   
cannot but mention among these precepts 
a new means of study1 which1 although it
 may seem trivial and almost ridiculous1
 is nevertheless extremely useful in    
arousing the mind to #aje various       
inventions4  ,it is as follows3 when you
 look at walls mottled with various     
stains or stones made of diverse        
substances1 if you have to invent some  
scene1 you may discover on them the     
likeness of various countries1 adorned  
with mountains1 rivers1 rocks1 trees1   
plains1 great valleys and hills in      
diverse arrangement2 again1 you may be  
able to see battles and figures in      
action and strange effects of           

physiognomy and costumes1 and infinite  
objects which you could reduce to       
complete and harmonious forms4  ,and the
 effect produced by these mottled walls 
is like that of the sound of bells1 in  
the vibrating of which you may recognize
 any name or word you choose to imagine4
  ,i have seen blots in the clouds and  
in mottled walls which have stimulated  
me to the invention of various objects1 
and although the blots themselves were  
altogether devoid of perfection in any  
one of their parts1 they lacked not     
perfection in their movement and        
circumstance4   #ej4  ,obtain knowledge 
first1 and then proceed to practice1    
which is born of knowledge4   ,sidenote3
 ,theory and ,practice  #ea4  ,knowledge
 is the captain1 and practice the       
soldiers4   #eb4  ,the painter who draws
 by practice and by the #ajf eye1       
without the guide of reason1 is like the
 mirror1 which reflects all the objects 
which are placed before it and knows not
 that they exist4   #ec4  ,many will    

consider they can reasonably blame me by
 alleging that my proofs are contrary to
 the authority of many men held in great
 esteem by their inexperienced          
judgements3 overlooking the fact that my
 works are solely and simply the        
offspring of experience1 which is the   
veritable master4   #ed4  ,they who are 
enamoured of practice without knowledge 
are like the mariner who puts to sea in 
a vessel without rudder or compass1 and 
who navigates without a course4         
,practice should always be based on     
sound theory2 perspective is the guide  
and the portal of theory1 and without it
 nothing can be well done in the art of 
painting4   ,sidenote3 ,course of ,study
  #ee4  ,the youth should first learn   
perspective1 and then the measurements  
of every object2 he should then copy    
from some good master to accustom       
himself to well-drawn forms1 then from  
nature to acquire confirmation of the   
theories he has learnt2 then he should  
study for a time the works of various   

masters1 and finally attain the #ajg    
habit of putting into practice and      
producing his art4   #ef4  ,mathematics1
 such as appertain to painting1 are     
necessary to the painter1 also the      
absence of companions who are alien to  
his studies3 his brain must be versatile
 and susceptible to the variety of      
objects which it encounters1 and free   
from distracting cares4  ,and if in the 
contemplation and definition of one     
subject a second subject intervenes1--as
 happens when the mind is filled with an
 object1--in such cases he must decide  
which of the two objects is the more    
difficult of definition1 and pursue that
 one until he arrives at perfect        
clearness of definition1 and then turn  
to the definition of the other4  ,and   
above all things his mind should be like
 the surface of the mirror1 which shows 
as many colours as there are objects it 
reflects2 and his companions should     
study in the same manner1 and if such   
cannot be found he should meditate in   

solitude with himself1 and he will not  
find more profitable company4           
,sidenote3 ,perspective  ,mathematics   
#eg4  ,in the study of natural causes   
and reasons light affords the greatest  
pleasure to the student2 among the great
 facts of mathematics the certainty of  
demonstration most signally elevates the
 mind of the student4  ,perspective must
 therefore be #ajh placed at the head of
 all human study and discipline1 in the 
field of which the radiant line is      
rendered complex by the methods of      
demonstration2 in it resides the glory  
of physics as well as of mathematics1   
and it is adorned with flowers of both  
these sciences4  ,the laws of those     
sciences which are capable of extensive 
analysis ,i will confine in brief       
conclusions1 and according to the nature
 of the material ,i will interweave     
mathematical demonstrations1 at times   
deducing results from causes1 and at    
times tracing causes by results4 ,i will
 add to my conclusions some which are   

not contained in these1 but which can be
 deduced from them1 if the ,lord1 the   
,supreme ,light1 illuminates me1 so that
 ,i may treat of light4   ,sidenote3 ,of
 the ,method of ,learning  #eh4  ,when  
you will have thoroughly mastered       
perspective and have learnt by heart the
 parts and forms of objects1 strive when
 you go about to observe4  ,note and    
consider the circumstances and the      
actions or men1 as they talk1 dispute1  
laugh or fight together1 and not only   
the behaviour of the men themselves1 but
 that of the bystanders who separate    
them or look on at these things2 and    
make a note of them1 in this way1 with  
slight marks in your little note-book4  
,and you should always carry this       
note-book with you1 and it should be of 
coloured paper1 so that what you #aji   
write may not be rubbed out2 but 7when  
it is used up7 change the old for a new 
one1 since these things should not be   
rubbed out1 but preserved with great    
care1 because such is the infinity of   

the forms and circumstances of objects1 
that the memory is incapable of         
retaining them2 wherefore keep these    
sketches as your guides and masters4    
#ei4  ,these rules are only to be used  
in correcting the figures1 since every  
man makes some mistakes in his first    
composition1 and he who is not aware of 
them cannot correct them2 but thou being
 conscious of thine errors wilt correct 
thy work and amend errors where thou    
findest them1 and take care not to fall 
into them again4  ,but if thou          
attemptest to apply these rules in      
composition thou wilt never finish      
anything1 and confusion will enter into 
thy work4  ,through these rules thou    
shalt acquire a free and sound          
judgement1 since sound judgement and    
thorough understanding proceed from     
reason arising from sound rules1 and    
sound rules are the offspring of sound  
experience1 the common mother of all the
 sciences and arts4  ,hence if thou     
bearest in mind the precepts of my rules

 thou shalt be able1 merely by thy      
corrected judgement1 to judge and       
recognize any lack of proportion in a   
work1 in perspective1 in figures or     
anything else4  #aaj  ,sidenote3 ,again 
of the ,method of ,learning  #fj4  ,i   
say that the first thing which should be
 learnt is the mechanism of the limbs1  
and when this knowledge has been        
acquired their actions should come next1
 according to the external circumstances
 of man1 and thirdly the composition of 
subjects1 which should be taken from    
natural actions1 made fortuitously      
according to circumstances2 and pay     
attention to them in the streets and    
public places and fields1 and note them 
with a brief indication of outlines2    
that is to say1 for a head make an ,o1  
and for an arm a straight or a bent     
line1 and the same for the legs and     
body2 and when thou returnest home work 
out these notes in a complete form4     
,the adversary says that to acquire     
practice and to do a great deal of work1

 it is better that the first course of  
study should be employed in copying     
diverse compositions done on paper or on
 walls by various masters1 and that thus
 rapidity of practice and a good method 
is acquired2 to which ,i reply that this
 method will be good if it is based on  
works which are well composed by        
competent masters2 and since such       
masters are so rare that but few of them
 are to be found1 it is safer to go to  
nature1 than to what to its             
deterioration is imitated from nature1  
and to fall into bad habits1 since he   
who can go to the fountain does not go  
to the water-vessel4  #aaa  ,sidenote3  
,counsel to the ,painter  #fa4  ,every  
bough and every fruit is born above the 
insertion of its leaf1 which serves it  
as a mother1 giving it water from the   
rain and moisture from the dew which    
falls on it from above in the night1 and
 often it shields them from the heat of 
the sun's rays4  ,therefore1 ,o painter1
 who lackest such rules1 be desirous1 in

 order to escape the blame of those who 
know1 of copying every one of thy       
objects from nature1 and despise not    
study after the manner of those who work
 for gain4   ,sidenote3 ,on ,anatomy    
#fb4  ,and you who say that it would be 
better to see practical anatomy than    
drawings of it1 would be right if it    
were possible to see all the things     
which are shown in such drawings in a   
single drawing1 in which you1 with all  
your skill1 will not see nor obtain     
knowledge of more than a few veins2 and 
to obtain true and complete knowledge of
 these veins ,i have destroyed more than
 ten human bodies1 destroying all the   
other limbs1 and removing1 down to its  
minutest particles1 the whole of the    
flesh which surrounds these veins1      
without letting them bleed save for the 
insensible bleeding of the capillary    
veins4  ,and as one body did not suffice
 for so long a time ,i had to proceed   
with several bodies by degrees until ,i 
finished by acquiring perfect knowledge1

 and this ,i #aab repeated twice to see 
the differences4  ,and if you have a    
love for such things you may be         
prevented by disgust1 and if this does  
not prevent you1 you may be prevented by
 fear of living at night in company with
 such corpses1 which are cut up and     
flayed and fearful to see2 and if this  
does not prevent1 you may not have a    
sufficient mastery of drawing for such a
 demonstration1 and if you have the     
necessary mastery of drawing1 it may not
 be combined with the knowledge of      
perspective2 and if it were you might   
lack the power of geometrical           
demonstration1 and the calculation of   
forces1 and of the strength of the      
muscles1 and perhaps you will lack      
patience and consequently diligence4    
,as to whether these qualities are to be
 found in me or not the hundred and     
twenty books ,i have composed will      
pronounce the verdict ,yes or ,no4      
,neither avarice nor negligence1 but    
time has hindered me in these4          

,farewell4   ,sidenote3 ,on ,study  #fc4
  ,i have myself proved that it is      
useful when you are in bed in the dark  
to work with the imagination1 summing up
 the external outlines of the forms     
previously studied or other noteworthy  
things apprehended by subtle            
speculation2 and this is a laudable     
practice and useful in impressing       
objects on the memory4   #aac           
,sidenote3 ,on judging ,pictures  #fd4  
,we are well aware that faults are more 
easily recognized in the works of others
 than in our own1 and often in blaming  
the small faults of others thou wilt    
ignore great ones in thyself4  ,and to  
avoid such ignorance see that in the    
first place thy perspective be sound1   
then acquire a complete knowledge of the
 measurements of man and other animals1 
and of good architecture2 that is to    
say1 as far as the forms of buildings   
and other objects which are on the earth
 are concerned1 and these are infinite  
in number4  ,the more of them that thou 

knowest1 the more praiseworthy will be  
thy work2 and in cases where thou hast  
no experience do not refuse to draw them
 from nature4   ,sidenote3 ,advice to   
the ,painter  #fe4  ,certainly while a  
man is painting he should not be loth to
 hear every opinion3 since we know well 
that a man1 although he be not a        
painter1 is cognizant of the forms of   
another man1 and will be able to judge  
them1 whether he is hump-backed or has a
 shoulder too high or too low1 or       
whether he has a large mouth or nose1 or
 other defects4  ,and if we know that   
men are capable of giving a correct     
judgement on the works of nature1 much  
more ought we to acknowledge their      
competence to judge our faults1 since we
 know how greatly a man may be deceived 
in #aad his own work2 and if thou art   
not conscious of this in thyself1 study 
it in others and thou wilt profit by    
their faults4  ,therefore be desirous to
 bear with patience the opinions of     
others1 and consider and reflect well   

whether he who blames has good ground or
 not to blame thee1 and if thou thinkest
 that he has1 amend thy work2 and if    
not1 act as though thou hadst not heard 
him1 and if he should be a man thou     
esteemest show him by reasoning where   
his mistake lies4   #ff4  ,there is a   
certain generation of painters who1     
owing to the scantiness of their        
studies1 must needs live up to the      
beauty of gold and azure1 and with      
supreme folly declare that they will not
 give good work for poor payment1 and   
that they could do as well as others if 
they were well paid4  ,now consider1    
foolish people6  ,cannot such men       
reserve some good work and say1 ,this is
 costly2 this is moderate1 and this is  
cheap work1 and show that they have work
 at every price8   ,sidenote3 ,the      
,painter and the ,mirror  #fg4  ,when   
thou wishest to see whether thy picture 
corresponds entirely with the objects   
thou hast drawn from nature1 take a     
mirror and let the living reality be    

reflected in it1 and compare the        
reflection with thy picture1 and        
consider well #aae whether the subject  
of the two images are in harmony one    
with another4  ,and above all thou      
shouldst take the mirror for thy        
master1--a flat mirror1 since on its    
surface the objects in many respects    
have the same appearance as in painting4
  ,for thou seest that a painting done  
on a flat surface reveals objects which 
appear to be in relief1 and the mirror  
consisting of a flat surface produces   
the same effect2 the painting consists  
of one plane surface and the mirror     
likewise2 the picture is impalpable1 in 
so far as that which appears to be round
 and prominent cannot be grasped by the 
hands1 and it is the same with the      
mirror2 the mirror and the painting     
reveal the semblance of objects         
surrounded by light and shade2 each of  
them appears to be at a distance from   
its surface4  ,and if thou dost         
recognize that the mirror by means of   

outlines1 lights and shadows gives      
relief to objects1 and since thou hast  
in thy colours lights and shadows       
stronger than those of the mirror1 there
 is no doubt that if thou composest thy 
picture well1 it will also have the     
appearance of nature when it is         
reflected in a large mirror4            
,sidenote3 ,the ,painter's ,mind  #fh4  
,the mind of the painter should         
continually transmute the figure of the 
notable objects which come before him   
into so many discourses2 and imprint    
them in his memory and classify them    
#aaf and deduce rules from them1 taking 
the place1 the circumstances1 the light 
and the shade into consideration4       
,sidenote3 ,the ,variety of ,nature     
#fi4  ,i say that the universal         
proportions must be observed in the     
height of figures and not in their size1
 because in the admirable and marvellous
 things which appear in the works of    
nature there is no work of whatsoever   
character in which one detail is exactly

 similar to another2 therefore1 ,o thou 
imitator of nature1 pay heed to the     
variety of features4   #gj4  ,radically 
wrong is the procedure of some masters  
who are in the habit of repeating the   
same themes in the same episodes1 and   
whose types of beauty are likewise the  
same1 for in nature they are never      
repeated1 so that if all the beauties of
 equal excellence were to come to life  
again they would compose a larger       
population than that now existing in our
 century1 and since in the present      
century no one person is precisely      
similar to another1 so would it be among
 the beauties mentioned above4   #ga4   
,you must depict your figures with      
gestures which will show what the figure
 has in his mind1 otherwise your art    
will not be praiseworthy4   #aag        
,sidenote3 ,mind and ,expression  #gb4  
,no figure will be admirable if the     
gesture which expresses the passion of  
the soul is not visible in it4  ,the    
most admirable figure is that which best

 expresses the passion of its mind4     
#gc4  ,the good painter has two         
principal things to depict3 man and the 
purpose of his mind4  ,the first is     
easy1 the second is difficult1 since he 
must do it by the gestures and movements
 of the limbs1 and this is to be learnt 
from the dumb1 who more than all other  
men excel in it4   ,sidenote3 ,the ,dumb
 ,man guides the ,painter  #gd4  ,the   
figures of men have gestures which      
correspond to what they are doing1 so   
that in seeing them you understand what 
they are thinking of and saying2 and    
these will be learned well by him who   
will copy the gestures of the dumb1 for 
they speak by the gestures of their     
hands1 their eyes1 their brows and their
 whole person1 when they wish to express
 the purpose of their mind4  ,and do not
 mock me because ,i suggest a dumb      
teacher for the teaching of an art of   
which he is himself ignorant1 because he
 will teach you better by his gestures  
than all the others with their words4   

,and despise not such advice because    
they are the masters of gesture1 and    
understand at a #aah distance what a man
 is talking of if he suits the actions  
of the hands to the words4   ,sidenote3 
,advice to the ,painter  #ge4  ,it is a 
great fault in painters to repeat the   
same movements1 the same faces and      
manners of stuffs in one subject1 and to
 let the greater part of his faces      
resemble their creator2 and this has    
often been a source of wonder to me1 for
 ,i have known some who in all their    
figures seem to have depicted           
themselves4  ,and in the figures the    
actions and ways of the painter were    
visible4  ,and if they are prompt in    
action and in their ways the figures are
 likewise prompt2 and if the painter is 
pious1 the figures with their twisted   
necks appear pious likewise1 and if the 
painter is lazy the figures seem like   
laziness personified1 and if the painter
 is deformed so are his figures1 and if 
he is mad it is amply visible in figures

 of his subjects1 which are devoid of   
intention and appear to be heedless of  
their action1 some looking in one       
direction1 some in another1 as though   
they were dreaming2 and therefore every 
manifestation in the picture corresponds
 to a peculiarity in the painter4  ,and 
as ,i have often thought over the cause 
of this fault1 it seems to me that we   
must conclude that the spirit which     
directs and governs everybody is that   
which forms our intellect1 or rather1 it
 is our intellect itself4  ,it has #aai 
devised the whole figure of man         
according as it has thought fit that it 
should be1 either with long or a short  
and turned-up nose1 and thus it has     
determined its height and figure2 and so
 powerful is the intellect that it gives
 motion to the arms of the painter and  
causes him to reproduce himself1 since  
it appears to the spirit that this is   
the true method of portraying man1 and  
he that does otherwise is in error4     
,and should this spirit find any one who

 resembles its body1 which it has       
formed1 it loves it and becomes         
enamoured with it1 and for this reason  
many men fall in love and marry wives   
which resemble themselves1 and often the
 children which are born of the issue   
resemble their parents4   #gf4  ,the    
painter should portray his figure       
according to the measurements of a      
natural body1 which shall be of         
universal proper proportions2 in        
addition to this he should measure      
himself and see in which part his own   
figure varies greatly or less from the  
aforesaid pattern of excellence1 and    
when he has ascertained this he should  
try his utmost to avoid the defects     
which exist in his own person in the    
figures he portrays4  ,and know that    
thou must contend with all thy might    
against this fault inasmuch as it is a  
defect which originated with the        
intellect2 because the #abj spirit which
 governs thy body is that which is thine
 own intellect1 and it is inclined to   

take pleasure in works similar to that  
which it accomplished in forming its    
body4  ,and this is the reason that     
there is no woman1 however ugly1 who    
does not find a lover1 unless she be    
monstrous4  ,so remember to ascertain   
the defects of thy person and to avoid  
reproducing them in the figures thou    
dost compose4   #gg4  ,that painter who 
has coarse hands will portray the like  
in his works1 and the same thing will   
occur in every limb unless he avoids    
this pitfall by long study4  ,therefore1
 ,o painter1 look well on that part of  
thy person which is most ugly1 and by   
thy study make ample reparation for it1 
because if thou art bestial1 bestial and
 without intellect will be thy figures1 
and similarly both the good and ill     
which thou hast in thee will be         
partially visible in thy compositions4  
#gh4  ,men and words are already made1  
and thou1 painter1 who knowest not how  
to make thy figures move1 art like the  
orator who knows not how to employ his  

words4   #gi4  ,the movements of men are
 as varied as the #aba circumstances    
which pass through their minds2 and men 
will be more or less actuated by every  
circumstance in itself according as they
 are more or less powerful and according
 to age2 because in the same            
circumstance an old man or a youth will 
make a different movement4   ,sidenote3 
,power of ,expression in ,painting  #hj4
  ,the imagination does not perceive    
such excellent things as the eye1       
because the eye receives the images or  
semblances from objects1 and transmits  
them to the perception1 and from thence 
to the brain2 and there they are        
comprehended4  ,but the imagination does
 not issue forth from the brain1 with   
the exception of that part of it which  
is transmitted to the memory1 and in the
 brain it remains and dies1 if the thing
 imagined is not of high quality4  ,and 
in this case poetry is formed in the    
mind or in the imagination of the poet1 
who depicts the same objects as the     

painter1 and by reason of the work of   
his fancy he wishes to rival the        
painter1 but in reality he is greatly   
inferior to him1 as we have shown above4
  ,therefore with regard to the work of 
fancy we will say that there is the same
 proportion between the art of painting 
and that of poetry as exists between the
 body and the shadow proceeding from it1
 and the proportion is still greater1   
inasmuch as the shadow of such a body at
 least penetrates to #abb the brain     
through the eye1 but the imaginative    
embodiment of such a body does not enter
 into the eye1 but is born in the dark  
brain4  ,ah6  ,what difference there is 
between imagining such a light in the   
darkness of the brain and seeing it in  
concrete shape set free from all        
darkness4  ,if thou1 ,o poet1 dost      
represent the battle and its bloodshed  
enveloped by the obscure and dark air1  
amid the smoke of the terrifying and    
deadly engines1 together with the thick 
dust which darkens the air1 and the     

flight in terror of wretches            
panic-stricken by horrible death2 in    
this case the painter will surpass thee1
 because thy pen will be used up before 
thou hast scarcely begun to describe    
what the art of the painter represents  
for thee immediately4  ,and thy tongue  
shall be parched with thirst and thy    
body worn out with weariness and hunger 
before thou canst show what the painter 
will reveal in an instant of time4  ,and
 in this painting there lacks nothing   
save the soul of the things depicted1   
and every body is represented in its    
entirety as far as it is visible in one 
aspect2 and it would be a long and most 
tedious matter for poetry to enumerate  
all the movements of each soldier in    
such a war1 and the parts of their limbs
 and their ornaments which the finished 
picture places before you with great    
accuracy and brevity2 and to such a     
representation nothing is wanting save  
the noise of the engines1 and the cries 
of the terrifying victors1 #abc and the 

screams and lamentations of those       
awe-stricken2 neither again can the poet
 convey these things to the hearing4    
,we will say1 therefore1 that poetry is 
an art which is supremely potent for the
 blind1 and the painting has the same   
result on the deaf4 ,painting1          
therefore1 excels poetry in proportion  
as the sense to which it ministers is   
the nobler4  ,the only true function of 
the poet is to represent the words of   
people who talk among each other1 and   
these alone he represents to the hearing
 as if they were natural1 because they  
are natural in themselves and created by
 the human voice2 and in all other      
respects he is surpassed by the painter4
  ,still more1 incomparably greater is  
the width of range of painting than that
 of speech1 because the painter can     
accomplish an infinity of things which  
speech will not be able to name for want
 of the appropriate terms4  ,and seest  
thou not that if the painter wishes to  
depict animals and devils in ,hell with 

what richness of invention he proceeds8 
,and ,i once chanced to paint a picture 
which represented a divine subject1 and 
it was bought by the lover of her whom  
it represented1 and he wished to strip  
it of its divine character so as to be  
able to kiss it without offence4  ,but  
finally his conscience overcame his     
desire and his lust and he was compelled
 to remove the picture from his house4  
,now go thou1 poet1 and describe a      
beautiful woman without giving the      
semblance of #abd the living thing1 and 
with it arouse such desire in men6  ,if 
thou sayest3 ,i will describe then ,hell
 and ,paradise and other delights and   
terrors1--the painter will surpass thee1
 because he will set before thee things 
which in silence will make thee give    
utterance to such delight1 and so       
terrify thee as to cause thee to wish to
 take flight4  ,painting stirs the      
senses more readily than poetry4  ,and  
if thou sayest that by speech thou canst
 convulse a crowd with laughter or      

tears1 ,i rejoin that it is not thou who
 stirrest the crowd1 it is the pathos of
 the orator1 and his mirth4  ,a painter 
once painted a picture which caused     
everybody who saw it to yawn1 and this  
happened every time the eye fell on the 
picture1 which represented a person     
yawning4 ,others have painted libidinous
 acts of such sensuality that they have 
incited those who gazed on them to      
similar acts1 and poetry could not do   
this4  ,and if you write the description
 of certain deities the description will
 not be held in the same veneration as  
the picture of the ,deity1 because      
prayers and votive offerings will always
 be made to the picture1 and many       
peoples from diverse countries and from 
across the ,eastern seas will flock to  
it4  ,and they will invoke the picture1 
and not the writing1 for succour4  ,who 
is he who would not lose hearing1 smell 
and touch rather than sight8  ,because  
he who loses his sight is like the man  
who is driven from the world1 because   

#abe he sees neither it nor anything    
else any longer4  ,and this life becomes
 the sister of ,death4   ,sidenote3     
,landscapes  #ha4  ,i have been to see a
 variety of cloud effects1 and lately   
over ,milan towards ,lake ,maggiore ,i  
saw a cloud in the form of a huge       
mountain full of fiery scales1 because  
the rays of the sun1 which was already  
reddening and close to the horizon1     
tinged the cloud with its own colour4   
,and this cloud attracted to it all the 
lesser clouds which were around it2 and 
the great cloud did not move from its   
place1 but on the contrary retained on  
its summit the light of the sun till an 
hour and a half after nightfall1 such   
was its immense size2 and about two     
hours after nightfall a great1 an       
incredibly tremendous wind arose4       
,sidenote3 ,vegetation of a ,hill  #hb4 
,the grasses and plants will be paler in
 proportion as the soil which nourishes 
them is leaner and devoid of moisture2  
the earth is leaner and less rich in    

moisture on the rocks of which the      
mountains are formed4  ,and the trees   
will be smaller and thinner in          
proportion as they are nearer to the    
summit of the mountain2 and the soil is 
leaner in proportion as it is nearer to 
the said summit1 and it is richer in    
proportion as it is nearer the hollow   
valleys4  ,therefore1 ,o painter1 #abf  
thou shalt represent rocks on the       
summits of the mountains--for they are  
composed of rocks--for the greater part 
devoid of soil1 and the plants which    
grow there are small and lean and for   
the greater part withered and dry from  
lack of moisture1 and the sandy and lean
 earth is seen through the faded plants2
 and the small plants are stunted and   
aged1 exiguous in size1 with short and  
thick boughs and few leaves2 they cover 
for the greater part the rust-coloured  
and dry roots1 and are interwoven in the
 strata and the fissures of the rugged  
rocks1 and issue from trunks maimed by  
men or by the winds2 and in many places 

you see the rocks surmounting the       
summits of the high mountains1 covered  
with a thin and faded moss2 and in some 
places their true colour is laid bare   
and made visible owing to the percussion
 of the lightnings of ,heaven1 whose    
course is often obstructed to the damage
 of these rocks4  ,and in proportion as 
you descend towards the base of the     
mountains the plants are more vigorous  
and their boughs and foliage are denser2
 and their vegetation varied according  
to the various species of the plants of 
which such woods are composed1 and their
 boughs are of diverse arrangement and  
diverse amplitude of foliage1 various in
 shape and size2 and some have straight 
boughs like the cypress1 and some have  
widely scattered and spreading boughs   
like the oak and the chestnut tree1 and 
the like2 some have very #abg small     
leaves1 others have a spare foliage like
 the juniper and the plane tree1 and    
others2 some plants born at the same    
time are divided by wide spaces1 and    

others are united with no division of   
space between them4   ,sidenote3 ,how to
 represent ,night  #hc4  ,that which is 
entirely devoid of light is all         
darkness2 as the night is like this and 
you wish to represent a night subject1  
represent a great fire1 so that the     
object which is nearest to the fire may 
be tinged with its colour1 since the    
object which is nearest the fire will   
participate most in its nature4  ,and as
 you will make the fire red1 all the    
objects which it illumines must be red  
also1 and those which are farther off   
from the fire will be dyed to a greater 
extent by the dark colour of night4     
,the figures which are between you and  
the fire appear dark from the obscurity 
of the night1 not from the glow of the  
firelight1 and those which are at the   
side are half dark and half ruddy1 and  
those which are visible beyond the edge 
of the flames will be altogether lighted
 up by the red glow against a black     
background4 ,as to their action1 make   

those which are near shield themselves  
with their hands and cloaks against the 
intense heat with averted faces as      
though about to flee2 with regard to    
those who are farther off1 represent    
them chiefly in the act of raising their
 hands to their eyes1 dazzled by the    
intense glare4  #abh  ,sidenote3 ,how to
 represent ,storm  #hd4  ,if you wish to
 represent well a storm1 consider and   
weigh its effects when the wind1 blowing
 across the surface of the sea and the  
earth1 removes and carries with it those
 things which are not stable in the     
universal drift4  ,and in order to      
represent this storm adequately1 you    
must in the first place represent       
tattered and rent clouds rushing with   
the rushing wind1 accompanied by sandy  
dust caught up from the seashores1 and  
boughs and leaves torn up by the force  
and fury of the wind1 and dispersed in  
the air with many other light objects4  
,the trees and the plants bent towards  
the earth almost seem as though they    

wished to follow the rushing wind1 with 
their boughs wrenched from their natural
 direction and their foliage all        
disordered and distorted4 ,of the men   
who are to be seen1 some are fallen and 
entangled in their clothes and almost   
unrecognizable on account of the dust1  
and those who remain standing may be    
behind some tree1 clutching hold of it  
so that the wind may not tear them away2
 others1 with their hands over their    
eyes on account of the dust1 stoop      
towards the ground1 with their clothes  
and hair streaming to the wind4  ,the   
sea should be rough and tempestuous1 and
 full of swirling eddies and foam among 
the high waves1 and the wind hurls the  
spray through the tumultuous air like a 
thick and swathing mist4  #abi ,as      
regards the ships that are there1 you   
will depict some with torn sails and    
tattered shreds fluttering through the  
air with shattered rigging2 some of the 
masts will be split and fallen1 and the 
ship lying down and wrecked in the      

raging waves2 some men will be shrieking
 and clinging to the remnants of the    
vessel4  ,you will make the clouds      
driven by the fury of the winds and     
hurled against the high summits of the  
mountains1 and eddying and torn like    
waves beaten against rocks2 the air     
shall be terrible owing to deep darkness
 caused by the dust and the mist and the
 dense clouds4   ,sidenote3 ,how to     
describe a ,battle  #he4  ,in the first 
place you must represent the smoke of   
the artillery mingled with the air1 and 
the dust1 and tossed up by the stampede 
of the horses and the combatants4  ,and 
you must treat this confusion in this   
way3 dust being an earthly thing has    
weight1 and although owing to its       
fineness it is easily lifted up and     
mingled with the air1 it nevertheless   
falls readily to the earth again1 and it
 is its finest part which rises highest1
 therefore that part will be the least  
visible and will seem to be almost of   
the same colour as the air2 the higher  

the smoke1 which is mingled with the    
dusty air1 rises towards a certain      
height1 the more it will seem like a    
dark cloud1 and at the summit the smoke 
will be more visible than the dust4     
#acj ,the smoke will assume a bluish    
colour1 and the dust will retain its    
colour3 this mixture of air1 smoke and  
dust will seem much brighter on the side
 whence the light proceeds than on the  
opposite side2 the more densely the     
combatants are enveloped in this        
confusion the less distinctly will their
 lights and shadows be visible4  ,you   
must cast a glowing light on the        
countenances and the figures1 the       
atmosphere1 the musketeers and those who
 are near them1 and this light          
diminishes in proportion as the distance
 between it and its cause increases2 and
 the figures which are between you and  
the light will appear dark against a    
bright background1 and their legs will  
be less visible in proportion as they   
are nearer to the earth1 because the    

dust there is coarsest and thickest4    
,and if you depict horses galloping     
beyond the crowd1 make little clouds of 
dust1 distant one from the other in     
proportion to the strides made by the   
horses1 and the cloud which is farthest 
away from the horse will be the least   
visible2 it must be high1 scattered and 
thin1 and the nearer clouds will be more
 conspicuous1 smaller and denser4  ,the 
air must be full of arrows falling in   
every direction3 some flying upwards1   
some falling1 some on the level plane2  
and smoke should trail after the flight 
of the cannon-balls4  ,the foremost     
figures should have their hair and      
eyebrows clotted with dust2 dust must be
 on every flat portion they offer       
capable of retaining it4  #aca ,the     
conquerors you should make as they      
charge1 with their hair and the other   
light things appertaining to them       
streaming to the wind1 their brows      
contracted and the limbs thrust forward 
inversely1 that is1 if the right foot is

 thrust forward the left arm must be    
thrust forward also4  ,and if you       
portray a fallen man you must show where
 he has slipped and been dragged through
 the blood-stained mud1 and around in   
the wet earth you must show the imprint 
of the feet of men and the hoofs of     
horses that have passed there4  ,you    
will also represent a horse dragging its
 dead master1 and in the wake of the    
body its track1 as it has been dragged  
along through the dust and the mud2 you 
must make the vanquished and beaten     
pale1 their brows knit and the skin     
surmounting the brow furrowed with lines
 of pain4  ,on the sides of the nose    
there must be wrinkles forming an arch  
from the nostrils to the eyes and       
terminating at the commencement of the  
latter2 the nostrils should be drawn up1
 whence the wrinkles mentioned above2   
the arched lips show the upper row of   
teeth4  ,the teeth should be apart1 as  
with crying and lamentation4 ,one hand  
shields the frightened eyes1 the palm   

being held towards the enemy2 the other 
hand rests on the ground to sustain the 
raised body4 ,you shall portray others  
shouting in flight with their mouths    
wide open2 you must depict many kinds of
 weapons lying at the feet of the #acb  
combatants1 such as broken shields1     
lances1 shattered swords and other      
similar objects2 you must portray dead  
men1 some half covered1 some entirely   
covered1 by the dust which is mingled   
with the spilt blood and converted into 
red mud1 and the blood is seen by its   
colour flowing in a sinuous stream from 
the body to the dust2 others in their   
death-agony are grinding their teeth1   
rolling their eyes and clenching their  
fists against their bodies and their    
distorted legs4  ,some might be         
represented disarmed and thrown by the  
enemy1 turning upon him with teeth and  
nails to wreak cruel and sharp revenge2 
a riderless horse might be represented  
charging with his mane streaming to the 
wind amidst the enemy1 and inflicting   

great damage with his hoofs4  ,some     
maimed man might be seen fallen to the  
earth and protecting himself with his   
shield1 while the enemy1 bending over   
him1 tries to kill him4 ,you might show 
a number of men fallen together over a  
dead horse4  ,you would see some of the 
conquerors leaving the battle and       
issuing from the crowd1 clearing with   
their hands their eyes and cheeks of the
 mud made by the watering of their      
dust-bespattered eyes4  ,you would see  
the reserves standing full of hope and  
caution1 with brows alert1 shading them 
with their hands and gazing through the 
thick and confused darkness1 attentive  
to the orders of their captain2 and     
likewise the captain1 with his staff    
raised1 is rushing towards these #acc   
reserves and points out to them the spot
 where they are needed2 and you may add 
a river with horses charging into it and
 stirring up the water all round them   
into seething waves of mixed foam and   
water1 which is spurted into the air and

 among the legs and bodies of the       
horses4  ,and there must not be a level 
place that is not trampled with gory    
footsteps4   ,sidenote3 ,envy  #hf4     
,envy offends with false infamy1 that is
 to say1 by detraction which frightens  
virtue4  ,envy must be represented with 
the hands raised to heaven in contempt1 
because if she could she would use her  
power against ,god4  ,make her face     
covered with a goodly mark2 show her as 
wounded in the eye by a palm-branch1 and
 wounded in the ear by laurel and       
myrtle1 to signify that victory and     
truth offend her4  ,draw many           
thunderbolts proceeding from her as a   
symbol of her evil-speaking4 ,make her  
lean and shrivelled up1 because she is  
continual dissolution4 ,make her heart  
gnawed by a swelling serpent4  ,make her
 a quiver full of tongues for arrows1   
because she often offends with these4   
,make her a leopard's skin1 because the 
leopard kills the lion through envy and 
by deceit4  ,place a vase in her hand   

full of flowers1 and let it be full also
 of scorpions1 toads and other reptiles4
  ,let her ride ,death1 because ,envy1  
which is undying1 never wearies of      
sovereignty4  #acd ,make her a bridle   
loaded with divers arms1 because her    
weapons are all deadly4  ,as soon as    
virtue is born it begets envy which     
attacks it2 and sooner will there exist 
a body without a shadow than virtue     
unaccompanied by envy4   ,sidenote3     
,fame  #hg4  ,fame alone rises towards  
heaven1 because ,god looks with favour  
on virtuous things2 infamy must be      
represented upside down1 because its    
works are contrary to ,god and move     
towards hell4  ,fame should be depicted 
covered with tongues instead of with    
feathers and in the form of a bird4     
,sidenote3 ,the ,expressive ,picture    
#hh4  ,a picture or a representation of 
human figures should be done in such a  
way that the spectator can easily       
recognize the purpose that is in their  
minds by their attitudes4  ,if you have 

to represent a man of high character1   
let his gestures be such as harmonize   
with fair words2 likewise1 if you have  
to represent a man of low character1 let
 his gestures be fierce1 let him thrust 
his arms towards the listener1 and let  
his head and chest be thrust forward in 
front of his feet1 following the hands  
of the speaker4  ,it is thus with a dumb
 man1 who seeing two speakers1 although 
he is deprived of hearing1 nevertheless1
 owing to the attitudes and gestures of 
the speakers1  understands the subject  
of their argument4  ,i once saw at      
,florence a man who had become deaf by  
an accident1 who1 if you spoke loud to  
him1 did not understand you1 but if you 
spoke gently1 without making any noise1 
he understood you merely by the movement
 of the lips4  ,now you can say1 ,does  
not one who talks loudly move his lips  
like one who talks softly8  ,in regard  
to this ,i leave experiment to decide3  
make a man speak gently to you and note 
his lips4   ,sidenote3 ,the ,ages of    

,man  #hi4  ,how the ages of man should 
be depicted3 that is1 infancy1          
childhood1 youth1 manhood1 old age1     
decrepitude4  ,how old men should be    
depicted with lazy and slow movements1  
their legs bent at the knees when they  
stand still1 and their feet placed      
parallel and apart1 their backs bent1   
their heads leaning forward and their   
arms only slightly extended4  ,how women
 should be represented in modest        
attitudes1 their legs close together1   
their arms folded together1 their heads 
bent and inclined to one side4  ,how old
 women should be represented with eager1
 vehement and angry gestures1 like the  
furies of ,hades2 the movement of the   
arms and the head should be more violent
 than that of the legs4  ,little        
children with ready and twisted         
movements when sitting1 and when        
standing up in shy and timid attitudes4 
#acf  #ij4  ,you will do as follows if  
you wish to represent a man talking to a
 number of people3 you must consider the

 matter which he has to treat1 and suit 
his action to the subject2 that is to   
say1 if the matter is persuasive1 let   
his action be appropriate to it2 if the 
matter is argumentative1 let the speaker
 hold one finger of the left hand with  
two fingers of the right hand1 closing  
the two smaller ones1 and with his face 
turned towards the people and his mouth 
half open1 let him seem to be about to  
speak1 and if he is sitting let him     
appear as though about to rise1 with his
 head forward2 if you represent him     
standing up1 let him lean slightly      
forward1 with his body and head towards 
the people4  ,you must represent the    
people silent and attentive1 looking at 
the orator's face with gestures of      
admiration1 and depict some old men with
 the corners of their mouths pulled down
 in astonishment at what they hear1     
their cheeks drawn in and full of lines1
 their eyebrows raised1 and thus causing
 a number of wrinkles on the forehead2  
again1 some must be sitting with the    

fingers of their hands clasped and      
resting on their knee2 another1 a bowed 
old man1 with one knee crossed over the 
other1 and on the knee let him hold his 
hand1 and let his other elbow rest on   
his hand1 and let the hand support his  
bearded chin4   #acg  #ia4  ,you must   
represent an angry man holding some one 
by the ear1 beating his head against the
 ground1 with one knee on his ribs1 his 
right arm raising his fist in the air2  
his hair must be dishevelled1 his       
eyebrows low and narrow1 his teeth      
clenched and the two corners of his     
mouth set1 his neck swelled and his brow
 wrinkled and bent forward as he leans  
over his enemy4   #ib4  ,the desperate  
man must hold a knife and must have torn
 open his garments1 and with one hand he
 must be tearing open the wound2 and you
 must represent him with extended feet  
and the legs slightly bent and his body 
leaning towards the earth1 his hair     
flying and dishevelled4   ,sidenote3    
,notes on the ,last ,supper  #ic4  ,one 

who was in the act of drinking leaves   
his glass in its place1 and turns his   
head towards the speaker4  ,another1    
twisting the fingers of his hands       
together1 turns with stern brows to his 
companions4  ,another1 with his hands   
spread out1 shows their palms1 and      
shrugs his shoulders towards his ears2  
his mouth expresses amazement4  ,another
 speaks in the ear of his neighbour1 and
 he1 as he listens to him1 turns towards
 him1 lending him his ear1 while he     
holds a knife in one hand and #ach a    
piece of bread in the other1 half cut   
through by the knife4  ,another1 in     
turning with a knife in his hand1 has   
upset a glass on the table4 ,another    
lays his hands on the table and looks   
fixedly4  ,another puffs out his cheeks1
 his mouth full4  ,another leans forward
 to see the speaker1 shading his eyes   
with his hand4  ,another draws back     
behind him who is leaning forward and   
sees the speaker between the wall and   
the man who is leaning forward4     #ada

  ,,iii  ,,thoughts ,,on ,,science      
99 99      99  ,sidenote3 ,necessity of 
,experience in ,science  ,there is no   
human experience that can be termed true
 science unless it can be mathematically
 demonstrated4  ,and if thou sayest that
 the sciences which begin and end in the
 mind are true1 this cannot be conceded1
 but must be denied for many reasons1   
and firstly because in such mental      
discourses experience is eliminated1 and
 without experience there can be no     
certainty4   ,sidenote3 ,theory and     
,practice  #b4  ,you must first propound
 the theory and then explain the        
practice4   #c4  ,let no man who is not 
a mathematician read the principles of  
my work4   #d4  ,in the course of       
scientific exposition the demonstration 
of a general rule derived from a        
previous conclusion is not to be        
censured4   #adb  ,sidenote3 ,certainty 
of ,mathematics  #e4  ,he who blames the
 supreme certainty of mathematics feeds 
on confusion and will never be able to  

silence the contradictions or           
sophistical sciences which lead to an   
everlasting clamour4   ,sidenote3 ,of   
,science  #f4  ,there is no certainty in
 science where one of the mathematical  
sciences cannot be applied1 or in those 
sciences which are not in harmony with  
mathematics4   ,sidenote3 ,from         
,leonardo's ,dictionary  #g4            
,syllogism3 to speak doubtfully4        
,sophism3 to speak confusedly2 falsehood
 for truth4  ,theory3 knowledge without 
practice4   ,sidenote3 ,definition of   
,science  #h4  ,science is that         
discourse of the mind which derives its 
origin from ultimate principles beyond  
which nothing in nature can be found    
which forms a part of that science3 as  
in the continued quantity1 that is to   
say1 the science of geometry1 which1    
starting from the surfaces of bodies1   
has its origin in the line1 which is the
 end of the superficies2 and we are not 
satisfied by this1 because we know that 
the line terminates in the point1 and   

the point is that which is the least of 
things4  ,therefore the point is the    
first principle of geometry1 and nothing
 else can exist either #adc in nature or
 in the human mind from which the point 
can issue4  ,because if you say that the
 contact between a surface and the      
extreme point of an iron instrument is  
the creation of the point1 it is not    
true2 but let us say that this point of 
contact is a superficies which surrounds
 its centre1 and in the centre the point
 dwells4  ,and such a point is not a    
part of the substance of the            
superficies1 neither it nor all the     
points of the universe can1 even if     
combined1--it being granted that they   
could be combined1--compose any part of 
a superficies4  ,and granted1 as you    
imagined1 a whole composed of a thousand
 points1 if we divide any part of this  
quantity of a thousand1 we can very well
 say that this part shall equal its     
whole2 and this we can prove by zero1 or
 naught1 that is1 the tenth figure of   

arithmetic1 which is represented by a   
cipher as being nothing1 and placed     
after unity it will signify #aj1 and if 
two ciphers are placed after unity it   
will signify #ajj1 and thus the number  
will go on increasing by ten to infinity
 whenever a cipher is added1 and the    
cipher in itself is worth nothing more  
than naught1 and all the naughts in the 
universe are equal to one naught alone1 
in regard to their substance and value4 
,sidenote3 ,true ,science based on the  
,testimony of the ,senses  #i4          
,knowledge which is the issue of        
experience is termed mechanical2 that   
which is born and ends #add in the mind 
is termed scientific2 that which issues 
from science and ends in manual work is 
termed semi-mechanical4  ,but ,i        
consider vain and full of error that    
science which is not the offspring of   
experience1 mother of all certitude1 and
 which does not result in established   
experience1 that is to say1 whose       
origin1 middle and end do not pass      

through any of the five senses4  ,and if
 we doubt of everything we perceive by  
the senses1 should we not doubt much    
more of what is contrary to the senses1 
such as the existence of ,god and of the
 soul1 and similar matters constantly   
under dispute and contention8  ,and it  
is truly the case that where reason is  
lacking it is supplemented by noise1    
which never happens in matters of       
certainty4  ,on account of this we will 
say that where there is noise there is  
no true science1 because truth has one  
end only1 which1 when it is made known1 
eternally silences controversy1 and     
should controversy come to life again1  
it is lying and confused knowledge which
 is reborn1 and not certainty4  ,but    
true science is that which has          
penetrated into the senses through      
experience and silenced the tongue of   
the disputers1 and which does not feed  
those who investigate it with dreams1   
but proceeds from the basis of primary  
truths and established principles       

successively and by true sequence to the
 end2 as1 for instance1 what comes under
 the heading of elementary mathematics1 
#ade that is1 numeration and            
measurement1 termed arithmetic and      
geometry1 which treat with the highest  
truth of the discontinued and continued 
quantity4 ,here there will be no dispute
 as to whether twice three make more or 
less than six1 nor whether two angles of
 a triangle are less than two right     
angles1 but eternal silence shall ignore
 all controversy1 and the devotees of   
the true science will finish their      
studies in peace1 which the lying mental
 sciences cannot do4  ,and if thou      
sayest that true and established science
 of this kind is a species of mechanics1
 because they can only be completed by  
the hand1 ,i will say the same of all   
the arts1 such as that which passes     
through the hand of the sculptor1 which 
is a kind of drawing1 a part of         
painting2 and astrology and the other   
sciences pass through manual operation1 

but they are mental in the first place1 
as painting1 which first of all exists  
in the mind of the composer1 and cannot 
attain to fulfilment without manual     
labour4  ,with regard to painting1 its  
true and scientific principles must be  
established3 what constitutes a shaded  
body1 what constitutes a primary shade1 
a derivative shade1 what constitutes    
light3 that is1 darkness1 light1 colour1
 size1 shape1 position1 distance1       
propinquity1 motion1 rest1 which are    
comprehended by the mind only1 and      
without manual labour4  ,and this is the
 science of painting which remains in   
the mind of those who meditate on it1   
from which #adf issues the work in due  
time1 and is infinitely superior to the 
aforesaid contemplation or science4     
,sidenote3 ,mechanics  #aj4  ,mechanics 
are the paradise of scientific          
mathematics1 because with them we arrive
 at the fruits of mathematics4          
,sidenote3 ,mechanics and ,experience   
#aa4  ,experience is indispensable for  

the making of any instrument4   #ab4    
,proportion is not only to be found in  
figures and measurements1 but also in   
sound1 weight1 time and position1 and in
 whatever power which exists4           
,sidenote3 ,reason and ,experience  #ac4
  ,the power of the projecting force    
increases in proportion as the object   
projected is smaller2 the acceleration  
of the motion increases to infinity     
proportionately to this diminution4  ,it
 would follow that an atom would be     
almost as rapid as the imagination or   
the eye1 which in a moment attains to   
the height of the stars1 and            
consequently its voyage would be        
infinite1 because the thing which can be
 infinitely diminished would have an    
infinite velocity and would travel on an
 infinite course 7because every         
continuous quantity is divisible to     
infinity74  ,and this opinion is #adg   
condemned by reason and consequently by 
experience4  ,thus1 you who observe rely
 not on authors who have merely by their

 imagination wished to be interpreters  
between nature and man1 but on those    
alone who have applied their minds not  
to the hints of nature but to the       
results of their experience4  ,and you  
must realize the deceptiveness of       
experiments2 because those which often  
appear to be one and the same are often 
different1 as is shown here4            
,sidenote3 ,effects correspond to the   
,force of their ,cause  #ad4  ,a        
spherical body which possesses a dense  
and resisting superficies will move as  
much in the rebound resulting from the  
resistance of a smooth and solid plane  
as it would if you threw it freely      
through the air1 if the force applied be
 equal in both cases4  ,oh1 admirable   
justice of thine1 thou first mover6 thou
 hast not permitted that any tone should
 fail to produce its necessary effects1 
either as regards order or quantity4    
,seeing that a force impels an object   
which it overcomes a distance of one    
hundred arms' length1 and if in obeying 

this law it meets with resistance1 thou 
hast ordained that the force of the     
shock will cause afresh a further       
movement1 which in its various bounds   
recuperates the whole sum of the        
distance it should have travelled4  ,and
 if you measure the distance #adh       
accomplished by the aforesaid bounds you
 will find that they equal the length of
 distance through which a similar object
 set in motion by an equal force would  
travel freely through the air4   #ae4   
,every action must be caused by motion4 
#af4  ,motion is the cause of all life4 
,sidenote3 ,of ,force  #ag4  ,what is   
force8  ,force1 ,i say1 is a spiritual  
virtue1 an invisible power1 which by    
accidental external violence is caused  
by motion1 and communicated and infused 
into bodies which are inert by nature1  
giving them an active life of marvellous
 power4   #ah4  ,what is force8  ,i say 
that force is a spiritual1 incorporate  
and invisible power1 which for a brief  
duration is produced in bodies that by  

accidental violence are displaced from  
their natural state of inertia4         
,sidenote3 ,origin of ,force  #ai4      
,force arises from dearth or abundance2 
it is the child of physical motion and  
the grandchild of spiritual motion1 and 
the mother and origin of gravity4       
,gravity is confined to the elements of 
#adi water and earth1 and this force is 
infinite1 because infinite worlds could 
be moved by it if instruments could be  
made by which the force could be        
generated4  ,force1 with physical       
motion1 and gravity1 with resistance1   
are the four accidental powers by which 
all mortal things live and die4 ,force  
has its origin in spiritual motion1 and 
this motion1 flowing through the limbs  
of sentient animals1 enlarges their     
muscles1 and thus enlarged the muscles  
are shrunk in length and contract the   
tendons with which they are connected1  
and this is the cause of the strength in
 human limbs4  ,the quality and quantity
 of the strength of a man can generate a

 further force1 which will increase in  
proportion to the duration of the       
motions produced by them4   ,sidenote3  
,aspects of ,force  #bj4  ,gravity1     
force and casual motion together with   
resistance are the four external powers 
by which all the visible actions of man 
live and die4   ,sidenote3 ,of ,inertia 
#ba4  ,a motion tends to be continuous2 
a body set in motion continues to move  
as long as the impression of the motive 
power lasts in it4   ,sidenote3 ,can    
,man imitate a ,bird's ,flight8  #bb4   
,the bird is an instrument which        
operates by mathematical laws1 and man  
can reproduce all #aej the movements of 
this instrument1 but cannot attain to   
the intensity of its power2 and can only
 succeed in acquiring balance4  ,thus we
 will say that such an instrument       
constructed by man lacks only the soul  
of the bird1 and the soul of man must   
counterfeit the soul of the bird4  ,the 
spirit in the frame of the bird         
doubtless would respond to needs of that

 frame better than would the spirit of  
man1 whose frame is different1 more     
especially in the almost insensible     
motions of balance2 and since we see the
 bird make provision for the many       
sensible varieties of movement1 we can  
conclude by such experience that man can
 acquire knowledge of the more markedly 
sensible of these movements1 and that he
 will be able to make ample provision   
against the destruction of that         
instrument of which he has made himself 
the spirit and the guide4   ,sidenote3  
,of ,inertia  #bc4  ,a natural and      
continuous motion seeks to preserve its 
course along the line of its            
starting-point1 that is to say1 let us  
call starting-point whatever place in   
which it varies4   #bd4  ,everything    
maintains itself by motion4  ,and if it 
were possible to describe a diameter of 
air on the sphere of the earth1 like to 
a well1 which would extend from one     
superficies to the other1 #aea and if a 
weighty body were dropped into this     

well1 the body would seek to remain     
stationary at the centre1 but so strong 
would be the impetus that for many years
 it would prevent it from so doing4     
,sidenote3 ,transmission of ,motion     
#be4  ,impetus is a virtue created by   
motion and communicated by the motive   
force to the object moved1 and this     
object acquires motion in proportion to 
the energy of the impetus4   ,sidenote3 
,matter is ,inert  #bf4  ,no lifeless   
matter moves of itself1 but its motion  
is caused from without4   #bg4  ,all    
elements displaced from their natural   
place seek to return to it1 and more    
especially fire1 water and earth4   #bh4
  ,all matter universally seeks to      
maintain itself in its natural state2   
hence1 water in motion seeks to maintain
 its course according to the force by   
which it is propelled1 and if it meets  
with opposition it finishes the length  
of the course it began in a circular and
 reflex motion4   ,sidenote3 ,conception
 of ,energy  #bi4  ,impetus is the      

impression of motion conveyed by the    
motive power to the object moved4       
,every #aeb impression tends to         
permanence or seeks to attain           
permanence4  ,that every impression     
seeks after permanence is proved by the 
impression made by the sun on the eye   
which regards it1 and in the impression 
of sound made by the hammer which       
strikes a bell4 ,every impression seeks 
after permanence1 as is shown in the    
image of impetus communicated to the    
object moved4   #cj4  ,a weight seeks to
 fall to the centre of the earth by the 
most direct way4   ,sidenote3 ,in       
,praise of the ,sun  #ca4  ,if you look 
at the stars1 warding off the rays 7as  
may be done by looking through a small  
hole made by the extreme point of a fine
 needle placed so as almost to touch the
 eye71 they will appear so small as to  
seem as though nothing could be smaller2
 it is owing to their great distance    
that they appear so small1 for many of  
them are very many times larger than the

 star which is the earth with its water4
  ,now reflect what appearance this our 
star must have from so great a distance1
 and then consider how many stars might 
be placed--both in longitude and        
latitude--between those stars which are 
sown in the dark space4  ,i can never   
refrain from blaming many of the        
ancients who said that the size of the  
sun was no greater than #aec it appears2
 among whom was ,epicurus4  ,i believe  
he founded his reasoning on a light     
placed in our atmosphere equidistant    
from the centre of the earth1 which1 to 
any one looking at it1 never appears to 
diminish in size from whatever distance 
it is seen4   #cb4  ,i shall reserve the
 reasons of its size and power for      
later4  ,but ,i greatly marvel that     
,socrates should have depreciated such a
 body1 and that he should have said that
 it resembled an incandescent stone2 and
 he who opposed him as regards this     
error acted rightly4  ,but ,i wish ,i   
had words to blame those who seek to    

exalt the worship of men more than that 
of the sun1 since in the universe there 
is no body of greater magnitude and     
power to be seen than the sun4  ,and its
 light illumines all the celestial      
bodies which are distributed throughout 
the universe2 and the vital spark       
descends from it1 because the heat which
 is in living beings comes from the     
soul1 and there is no other centre of   
heat and light in the universe1 as will 
be shown later2 and it is certain that  
those who have elected to worship men as
 gods--as ,jupiter1 ,saturn1 ,mars1     
c4--have fallen into a profound error1  
since even if a man were as great as our
 earth1 he would have the appearance of 
a little star1 which appears like a dot 
in the universe2 and moreover these men 
are mortal1 and decay and corrupt in    
their sepulchres4   #aed  #cc4          
,epicurus perhaps saw the shadows of    
columns on the walls in front of them   
equal to the diameter of the column     
which cast the shadow2 and since the    

breadth of the shadows are parallel from
 beginning to end he considered that he 
might infer that the sun also was       
directly opposite to this parallel1 and 
consequently no broader than the column2
 and he did not perceive that the       
diminution of the shadow was insensibly 
small owing to the great distance of the
 sun4  ,if the sun were smaller than the
 earth1 the stars in a great portion of 
our hemisphere would be without         
light--in contradiction to ,epicurus1   
who says the sun is only as large as it 
appears to be4   #cd4  ,epicurus says   
the sun is the size it seems to be2     
hence1 as it seems to be a foot in      
breadth1 we must consider that to be its
 size4  ,it follows that when the moon  
eclipses the sun1 the sun ought not to  
appear the larger1 as it does2 hence1   
the moon being smaller than the sun1 the
 moon must be less than a foot in       
breadth1 and consequently when the earth
 eclipses the moon it must be less than 
a foot by a finger's breadth2 inasmuch  

as if the sun is a foot in breadth1 and 
the earth casts a conical shadow on the 
moon1 it is inevitable that the luminous
 cause of the conical shadow #aee must  
be greater than the opaque body which   
causes it4   #ce4  ,measure how many    
times the diameter of the sun will go   
into its course in twenty-four hours4   
,and thus we can see whether ,epicurus  
was correct in saying the sun was only  
as large as it appeared to be2 for as   
the apparent diameter of the sun is     
about a foot1 and as the sun would go a 
thousand times into its course in       
twenty-four hours1 it would have        
travelled a thousand feet1 that is1     
three hundred arms' length1 which is the
 sixth of a mile4  ,thus the course of  
the sun during twenty-four hours would  
have been the sixth part of a mile1 and 
this venerable snail1 the sun1 would    
have travelled twenty-five arms' length 
in an hour4   ,sidenote3 ,the ,sun's    
,heat  #cf4  ,they say that the sun is  
not hot because it is not the colour of 

fire but whiter and clearer4  ,and the  
answer to this is that when molten      
bronze is hottest it resembles the      
colour of the sun1 and when it is less  
hot it has the colour of fire4   #cg4   
,it is proved that the sun is by nature 
hot and not cold1 as has already been   
stated4  ,if rays of fire play on a     
concave mirror when it is cold1 the rays
 refracted by the mirror will be hotter 
than #aef the fire4 ,the rays emitted   
from a sphere of glass filled with cold 
water1 which are reflected from a fire1 
will be warmer than the fire4  ,it      
follows from these two experiments that 
the heat of the rays reflected by the   
mirror or the sphere of cold water are  
hot by virtue1 and not because the      
mirror or the sphere is hot2 and in this
 case it occurs that the sun1 passing   
through these bodies1 heats them by its 
virtue4  ,and owing to this they have   
inferred that the sun is not hot1--which
 by the aforesaid experiments has been  
proved to be exceedingly hot1 by the    

experiment of the mirror and the sphere1
 which are cold in themselves1 and      
reflect the hot rays of the fire and    
render them hotter1 because the first   
cause is hot2 and the same thing occurs 
as regards the sun1 which1 being hot in 
itself1 and passing through these cold  
mirrors1 refracts great heat4  ,it is   
not the light of the sun which gives    
warmth1 but its natural heat4           
,sidenote3 ,rays of the ,sun  #ch4  ,the
 rays of the sun pass through the cold  
region of the air without any change    
being effected in their nature1 they    
pass through glasses full of cold water 
without suffering change2 through       
whatever transparent spot they pass1 it 
is as though they passed through so much
 air4   ,sidenote3 ,light of the ,stars 
#ci4  ,some writers allege that the     
stars shine of #aeg themselves1 saying  
that if ,venus and ,mercury did not     
shine of themselves1 when their light   
comes between them and the sun they     
would darken as much of the sun as they 

could hide from our eye2 this is false1 
because it is proved that a dark body   
placed against a luminous body is       
enveloped and altogether covered by the 
lateral rays of the remaining part of   
that body1 and thus remains invisible2  
as may be proved when the sun is seen   
through the boughs of a leafless tree at
 a long distance1 the boughs do not hide
 any portion of the sun from our eyes4  
,the same thing occurs with the         
above-mentioned planets1 which1 though  
they have no light in themselves1 do    
not1 as has been said1 hide any portion 
of the sun from our eyes4  ,second      
proof4  ,they say that the stars shine  
most brightly at night in proportion as 
they are high2 and that1 if they did not
 shine of themselves1 the shadow cast by
 the earth between them and the sun     
would darken them1 since they would not 
see nor be seen by the sun4  ,but these 
have not taken into consideration that  
the conical shadow of the moon does not 
reach many of the stars1 and even for   

those it does reach the shadow is       
diminished to such an extent that it    
covers very little of the star1 and the 
remaining part is illumined by the sun4 
#aeh  ,sidenote3 ,on the ,nature of the 
,moon  #dj4  ,the moon having density   
and gravity1 how does it stand8   #da4  
i4  ,no very light object is opaque4    
ii4  ,nothing light can remain beneath  
that which is heavier4  iii4  ,whether  
the moon is the centre of its elements  
or not4  ,and if it has no fixed        
position like the earth in the centre of
 its elements1 why does it not fall to  
the centre of our elements8  ,and if the
 moon is not in the centre of its       
elements and does not fall1 it must then
 be lighter than any other element4     
,and if the moon is lighter than the    
other elements1 why is it opaque and not
 transparent8   #db4  ,no body which has
 density is lighter than the air4       
,having proved that the part of the moon
 which shines consists of water which   
mirrors the body of the sun and reflects

 for us the splendour it receives from  
the sun1 and that if there were no waves
 in these waters1 it would appear small1
 but almost as bright as the sun--it    
must now be shown whether the moon is a 
heavy or a light body2 if it is a heavy 
body--admitting that from the earth     
upwards with every grade of distance    
lightness must increase1 so that water  
is lighter than earth1 air is lighter   
than water1 and #aei fire lighter than  
air1 and so on in succession--it would  
seem that if the moon had density1 as it
 has1 it must have gravity1 and if it   
has gravity the space in which it lies  
could not contain it1 and consequently  
it would fall towards the centre of the 
universe and be joined to the earth1 or 
if not the moon itself1 its waters would
 fall from the moon and strip it and    
fall towards the centre1 leaving the    
moon bare and lustreless2 whence1 as    
this could not happen1 as reason would  
tell us1 it is manifest that the moon is
 surrounded by its elements1 that is to 

say1 water1 air and fire1 and thus it   
sustains itself by itself in that space 
as our earth is suspended with its      
elements in this part of space2 heavy   
bodies act in their elements there just 
as other heavy bodies act in ours4      
,sidenote3 ,on the ,harmony of the      
,spheres  #dc4  ,a sound is produced by 
the movement of the air in friction     
against a dense body1 and should it be  
produced by two weighty bodies it is    
owing to the atmosphere which surrounds 
them1 and this friction consumes the    
bodies1 so that it follows that the     
spheres in their friction1 owing to     
there being no atmosphere between them1 
do not generate sound4  ,and if this    
friction were a fact1 during the many   
centuries the spheres have revolved they
 would be consumed by the immense       
velocity expended daily2 and even if    
they produce sound1 the sound could not 
travel1 #afj because the sound caused by
 percussion under water is scarcely     
noticeable1 and it would be less than   

noticeable in the case of dense bodies4 
,the friction of polished bodies        
produces no sound1 and similar result   
would be produced in the contact or     
friction of the spheres2 and if the     
spheres are not polished in their       
contact and friction1 it follows that   
they are rough4  ,again1 their contact  
is not continuous2 this being the case a
 vacuum is produced1 which it has been  
proved does not exist in nature4        
,therefore we conclude that friction    
would have consumed the ends of each    
sphere1 and in proportion as a sphere   
has a greater velocity in the centre    
than at the poles1 it would be consumed 
to a higher degree at the centre than at
 the poles2 and then the friction would 
cease1 and the sound would cease also1  
and the spheres would cease to revolve  
unless one sphere revolved eastward and 
the other northward4   #dd4  ,worlds    
gravitate in the midst of their own     
elements4  ,the yellow or yolk of an egg
 remains in the middle of the albumen   

without moving on either side1 and is   
lighter or heavier or equal to this     
albumen2 and if it is lighter it ought  
to rise above all the albumen and stop  
in contact with the shell of the egg2   
and if it is heavier it ought #afa to   
sink2 and if it is equal to it1 it can  
stand at one of the ends as well as in  
the centre or below4   ,sidenote3 ,the  
,earth appears a ,star  #de4  ,the      
object of my book is to prove that the  
ocean1 with the other seas1 by means of 
the sun causes our world to shine like  
the moon and to appear as a star to     
other worlds2 and this ,i will prove4   
,sidenote3 ,the ,earth a ,star  #df4    
,in your discourse you must prove that  
the earth is a star like the moon1 and  
thus you will bear witness to the glory 
of our universe6  ,and thus you must    
discourse on the size of many stars4    
#dg4  ,how the earth is a star4  ,the   
earth1 in the midst of the sphere of    
water which clothes the greater part of 
it1 taking its light from the sun and   

shining in the universe like the other  
stars1 shows itself to be a star as     
well4   ,sidenote3 ,to prove the ,earth 
a ,star  #dh4  ,first of all define the 
eye2 then show how the twinkling of a   
star exists really in the eye1 and why  
one star should twinkle more than       
another1 and how the rays of the stars  
are born in the eye4  ,say1 that if the 
twinkling of the stars were1 as it      
appears to be1 really in the stars1 that
 this #afb twinkling appears to extend  
in proportion to the body of the star4  
,the star1 therefore1 being larger than 
the earth1 this motion made in an       
instant of time would in its velocity   
double the size of the star4  ,then     
prove that the surface of the           
atmosphere1 contiguous to fire and the  
surface of fire1 where it ends1 is the  
point in which the rays of the sun      
penetrate and bear the image of the     
celestial bodies which are large when   
they rise and set1 and small when they  
are on the meridian4   ,sidenote3 ,earth

 not the ,center of ,universe  #di4     
,the earth is not the centre of the     
orbit of the sun1 nor the centre of the 
universe1 but in the centre of its      
companion elements and united with them2
 and if any one were to stand on the    
moon when the moon and the sun are      
beneath us1 our earth1 with its element 
of water1 would appear and shine for him
 just as the moon appears and shines for
 us4   #ej4  ,the earth1 shining like   
the moon1 has lost a great part of its  
ancient splendour by the decrease of the
 waters4   #ea4  ,nothing is generated  
in a place where is no sentient         
vegetable and rational life2 feathers   
grow on birds and change every year2    
coats grow on animals and are changed   
every year1 with some #afc exceptions1  
like the lion's beard and the cat's fur1
 and such2 grass grows in the fields and
 leaves on the trees2 and every year    
they are renewed in great part4 ,thus we
 can say that the spirit of growth is   
the soul of the earth1 the soil its     

flesh1 the ordered arrangement of rocks 
its bones1 of which mountains are       
formed1 the tufa its tendons2 its blood 
the veins of water which surround its   
heart1 which is the ocean2 its breathing
 and increase and decrease of blood in  
the pulses the ebb and flood of the sea2
 and the heat of the spirit of the world
 is fire which pervades the earth1 and  
the vital soul dwells in the fires which
 from various apertures of the earth    
issue in springs and sulphur minerals   
and volcanoes1 as at ,mount ,etna in    
,sicily and in many other places4   #eb4
  ,the ancients called man the world in 
miniature1 and certainly the name is a  
happy one1 because man being composed of
 earth1 water1 air and fire1 the body of
 the earth resembles the body of man4   
,as man has in him bones for the support
 and framework of his flesh1 likewise in
 the world the rocks are the supports of
 the earth2 as man has in him a pool of 
blood in which the lungs rise and fall  
in their breathing1 so the body of the  

earth has its ocean which rises and     
falls every six hours as if the world   
breathed2 as from the aforesaid pool of 
blood veins issue which #afd ramify     
throughout the human body1 so does the  
ocean fill the body of the earth with   
innumerable veins of water4  ,the body  
of the earth lacks sinews1 which do not 
exist because sinews are made for       
movement1 and the world being in        
perpetual stability no movement occurs1 
and there being no movement1 sinews are 
not necessary2 but in all other points  
they resemble each other greatly4       
#ec4  ,water is the driver of nature4   
,sidenote3 ,experience the ,basis of    
,science  #ed4  ,in explaining the      
action of water remember to cite        
experience first and then reason4   #ee4
  ,do not forget that you must put      
forward propositions adducing the       
above-mentioned facts as illustrations1 
not as propositions1--that would be too 
simple4   #ef4  ,water in itself has no 
stability and cannot move of its own    

accord1 save to descend4  ,water of its 
own accord does not cease to move unless
 it is shut in4   #eg4  ,the body of the
 earth1 like the body of animals1 is    
intersected with ramifying veins1 which 
are all #afe united and constructed for 
the nourishment and life of the earth   
and of its creatures4   ,sidenote3      
,water is the ,blood of the ,world  #eh4
  ,the water which rises in the         
mountains is the blood which keeps the  
mountain alive1 and through this conduit
 or vein1 nature1 the helper of her     
creatures1 prompt in the desire to      
repair the loss of the moisture         
expended1 proffers the desired aid      
abundantly2 just as in a stricken spot  
in man you will see1 owing to the aid   
which is brought1 the blood abound under
 the skin in a swelling1 so as to       
succour the spot which has been         
stricken2 likewise1 in the case of the  
vine1 when it is cut at its extremity1  
nature causes its moisture to rise from 
the lowest root to the end of the       

extremity which has been cut1 and when  
this moisture has been expended nature  
ceases not to supply it with vital      
moisture to the end of its life4   #ei4 
,water is that which is given to supply 
vital moisture to this arid earth2 and  
the cause which propels it through its  
ramifications against the natural course
 of weighty matter is the same which    
stirs the humours in every kind of      
animal body4   ,sidenote3 ,water on     
,mountains  #fj4  ,water1 the vital     
moisture of the earthly machine1 moves  
by reason of its natural heat4   #aff   
,sidenote3 ,on the ,water of ,rivers    
#fa4  ,rivers1 with their ruinous       
inundations1 seem to me the most potent 
of all causes of terrestrial losses1 and
 not fire1 as some have maintained2     
because the violence of fire is         
exhausted where there is nothing        
forthcoming to feed it4  ,the flowing of
 water1 which is maintained by sloping  
valleys1 ends and dies at the lowest    
depth of the valley2 but fire is caused 

by fuel and the movement of water by    
incline4  ,the fuel of fire is          
disunited1 and its damage is disunited  
and isolated1 and fire dies where there 
is no fuel4  ,the incline of valleys is 
united1 and damage caused by water is   
collective1 along with the ruinous      
course of the river1 until with its     
valley it winds into the sea1 the       
universal base and sole haven of the    
wandering waters of rivers4  ,but what  
voice or words shall ,i find to express 
the disastrous ravages1 the incredible  
upheavals1 the insatiable rapacity1     
caused by the headstrong rivers8  ,what 
can ,i say8  ,certainly ,i do not feel  
myself equal to such a demonstration1   
yet by experience ,i will try to relate 
the process of ruin of the rivers which 
destroy their banks and against which no
 mortal bastion can prevail4   #fb4     
,the recesses of the bottom of the sea  
are perennial1 the summits of mountains 
are transitory1 whence it follows that  
the earth will become #afg spherical and

 covered with waters1 and will be       
uninhabitable4   ,sidenote3             
,transformations in ,past and ,future   
#fc4  ,the shores of the sea continually
 increase in soil1 towards the middle of
 the sea2 the cliffs and promontories of
 the sea are continually being ruined   
and consumed2 the mediterranean seas    
will dry up and all that will remain    
will be the channel of the greatest     
river which enters into them2 this will 
flow to the ocean and pour out its      
waters together with that of all the    
rivers which are its tributaries4       
,sidenote3 ,on the ,earth's ,vibration  
#fd4  ,the subterranean courses of      
water1 like those which are made between
 the air and the earth1 are those which 
continually consume and deepen the beds 
of their currents4  ,the earth which is 
carried by rivers is discharged at the  
end of their course1 that is to say1 the
 earth carried from the highest part of 
the river's course is discharged at the 
lowest depth of its course4  ,where     

fresh water arises in the sea1 the      
miracle of the creation of an island is 
manifest1 which will be discovered      
sooner or later in proportion as the    
quantity of water is greater or less4   
,and an island of this kind is formed by
 the deposit of earth and stones made by
 the subterranean current of water in   
the channels through which it passes4   
#afh  ,sidenote3 ,nature's ,law  #fe4   
,nature never breaks her laws4   #ff4   
,nature is constrained by the cause of  
her laws which dwells inborn in her4    
#fg4  ,without reason no effect is      
produced in nature2 understand the      
reason and you will not need experience4
   ,sidenote3 ,cause discovered by      
,effect  #fh4  ,before ,i proceed       
further ,i will make some experiments1  
because it is my intention to cite the  
experiment first and then to demonstrate
 by reasoning how such an experiment    
must necessarily take effect in such a  
manner4  ,and this is the true rule by  
which investigations of natural         

phenomena must proceed2 and although    
nature herself begins from the reason   
and ends in the result1 we must pursue  
the contrary course and begin1 as ,i    
said above1 from experience and by it   
seek out the reason4   ,sidenote3       
,repetition of ,experiment  #fi4        
,before deducing a general rule from    
this case repeat the experiment two or  
three times and see if the same results 
are produced4  #afi  ,sidenote3 ,example
 of preceding ,rule  #gj4  ,it several  
bodies of equal weight and shape are    
dropped one after another at equal      
intervals of time1 the distances between
 each successive body will be equally   
increased4  ,the experiment to prove the
 above-mentioned theorem respecting     
motion must be made thus3 ,take two     
balls of equal weight and shape and let 
them fall from a great height so that   
when they start falling they touch one  
another1 and let the investigator stand 
on the ground and watch whether the     
contact is maintained during their fall4

  ,this experiment must be repeated     
several times1 so that the trial may not
 be marred by any accident and the      
experiment vitiated and the spectator   
deceived4   ,sidenote3 ,necessity of    
,analysis  #ga4  ,we know definitely    
that sight is infinitely swift and in an
 instant of time perceives countless    
shapes1 nevertheless it only sees one   
object at a time4  ,let us take an      
example4  ,you1 ,o reader1 will see the 
whole of this written page at a glance1 
and you will instantly realize that it  
is full of various letters1 but you will
 not realize at that moment what these  
letters are nor what they signify2      
wherefore you will have to proceed word 
by word and line by line to take        
cognizance of these letters4  ,again1 if
 you wish to reach the summit of a      
building you must mount step by step1   
#agj otherwise it will be impossible for
 you to reach the summit4  ,and         
therefore ,i say to you whom nature has 
drawn to this art1 if you wish to attain

 to a thorough knowledge of the forms of
 objects1 you will begin by studying the
 details1 and not proceed to the second 
until you have committed the first to   
memory and mastered it in practice1 and 
if you do otherwise you will be wasting 
your time and protracting your studies4 
,and remember first of all to acquire   
diligence1 which signifies speed4       
,sidenote3 ,vision  #gb4  ,of the nature
 of the eye4  ,here are the forms1 here 
the colours1 here the form of every part
 of the universe are concentrated in a  
point1 and that point is so great a     
marvel6  ,o marvellous and stupendous   
necessity6 thou dost compel by thy law1 
and by the most direct path1 every      
effect to proceed from its cause4       
,these things are verily miracles6  ,i  
wrote in my ,anatomy how in so small a  
space the visual faculty can be         
reproduced and formed again in its whole
 expanse4   #gc4  ,in many cases one and
 the same thing is attracted by two     
violent forces1--necessity and power4   

,the water falls in rain and by         
necessity the earth absorbs the         
humidity2 the sun causes it to          
evaporate1 not of necessity1 but by     
power4  #aga  ,sidenote3 ,unconscious   
,reasoning  #gd4  ,the pupil of the eye 
in the air expands and contracts        
according to every degree of motion made
 by the sun4  ,and with every dilation  
or contraction the same object will     
appear of a different size1 although    
frequently the relative scale of        
surrounding circumstances does not allow
 us to perceive these variations in any 
single object we look at4   ,sidenote3  
,the ,eye  #ge4  ,the pupil of the eye  
dilates and contracts in proportion to  
the variety of bright and dark objects  
which are reflected in it4  ,in this    
case nature has afforded compensation to
 the visual faculty by contracting the  
pupil of the eye when it is offended by 
excess of light and by causing it to    
dilate when offended by excess of       
darkness1 like the opening of the purse4

  ,and nature here behaves like the man 
who has too much light in his house and 
closes half the window1 or more or less 
of it according to need2 and when night 
comes he opens the window altogether so 
as to see better inside his house1 and  
nature here adopts a continued process  
of compensation1 by continually         
regulating and readjusting the expansion
 and contracting of the pupil1 in       
proportion to the aforesaid obscurity   
and light which are continually         
reflected in it4   #agb  ,sidenote3     
,water surrounding the ,globe ,spherical
  #gf4  ,when you collect facts relating
 to the science of the motion of water1 
remember to place under every           
proposition the uses to which it may be 
applied1 in order that this knowledge   
may not be fruitless4   #gg4  ,this is a
 difficult question to answer1 but ,i   
will nevertheless state my opinion4     
,water1 which is clothed with air1      
desires naturally to cleave to its      
sphere because in this position it is   

without gravity4 ,this gravity is       
twofold1--the gravity of the whole which
 tends to the centre of the elements1   
and the gravity which tends to the      
centre of the waters of the spherical   
orb2 if this were not so the water would
 form a half sphere only1 which is the  
sphere described from the centre        
upwards4  ,but ,i see no means in the   
human mind of acquiring knowledge with  
regard to this4  ,we must say1 as we say
 of the magnet which attracts iron1 that
 such a virtue is an occult property of 
which there is an infinite quantity in  
nature4   #gh4  ,in the motion of earth 
against earth the repercussion of the   
portion struck is slight4  ,water struck
 by water1 eddies in circles around the 
spot where the shock has taken place4   
,the reverberation of the voice         
continues for a #agc great distance     
through the air2 for a greater distance 
through fire4  ,the mind travels for a  
still greater distance through the      
universe2 but since it is finite it does

 not penetrate into infinity4   #gi4    
,if the water which rises on the summits
 of the mountains comes from the sea1   
whence it is propelled by its weight to 
a greater height than that of the       
mountains1 why has this portion of the  
element of water the power to elevate   
itself to such an altitude and to       
penetrate the earth by so great an      
expenditure of labour and time1 when the
 residue of the element of water1 whose 
only obstacle is the air which does not 
impede it1 is not able to raise itself  
to a similar altitude8  ,and thou who   
didst devise this theory1 go and study  
nature1 so that thou mayst cease to     
acquire such opinions of which thou hast
 made so great a collection1 together   
with the capital and interest which thou
 dost possess4   ,sidenote3 ,on the ,law
 of ,gravity  #hj4  ,the sphere of the  
earth has gravity which increases in    
proportion to the lightness of the      
element which contains it4  ,fire is    
light in its sphere and its lightness   

increases in proportion to the weight of
 the element which contains it4  #agd   
,no primary element has gravity or      
lightness in its own sphere4   #ha4     
,the motion made by bodies which possess
 gravity to the common centre is not    
produced by the tendency of the body to 
find this centre1 nor is it caused by   
attraction made by the centre1 as by a  
magnet1 drawing the weight towards it4  
#hb4  ,why does not the weight remain in
 its place8  ,it does not remain because
 it has no resistance4  ,and whither    
will it tend8  ,it will tend to the     
centre of the earth4  ,and why not along
 other lines8  ,because the weight which
 meets with no resistance will descend  
by the shortest way to the lowest depth1
 and the lowest depth is the centre of  
the earth4  ,and how does a weight find 
the centre of the earth with such       
directness8  ,because it does not       
proceed at random1 wandering by diverse 
courses4   ,sidenote3 ,phenomena        
governed by ,mechanical ,laws  #hc4     

,instrumental science1 that is to say1  
mechanics1 is the most noble and most   
useful of sciences1 inasmuch as by means
 of it all living bodies which have     
movement act2 and this movement has #age
 its origin in the centre of gravity    
which is placed in the middle1 dividing 
unequal weights1 and it has dearth and  
wealth of muscles and lever also and    
counter-lever4   #hd4  ,since these     
things are far more ancient than        
letters1 it is no wonder if in our day  
no records exist to tell how these seas 
filled so many countries4  ,but if some 
record had existed1 conflagrations1     
floods1 wars1 changes of tongues and    
laws have consumed all that is ancient2 
sufficient for us is the testimony of   
objects born in the salt waters and     
found again in the high mountains far   
off from the seas of those times4       
,sidenote3 ,heat the ,vital ,principle  
#he4  ,heat causes moisture to move1 and
 cold arrests it2 as is seen in a cold  
country which arrests the motion of the 

clouds in the air4  ,where there is life
 there is heat1 where there is vital    
heat there is movement of moisture4     
,sidenote3 ,against those desiring to   
correct ,nature  #hf4  ,the act of      
cutting out the nostrils of a horse is a
 piece of ludicrous folly4  ,and the    
foolish indulge in this practice as     
though they considered nature had failed
 to supply necessary wants1 and man had 
therefore to supplement her work4       
,nature made two apertures in the nose1 
which each in #agf itself is half as    
large as the lung pipe whence breath    
proceeds1 and if these apertures did not
 exist the mouth would abundantly       
suffice for breathing purposes4  ,and if
 you said to me1 ,why has nature thus   
provided animals with nostrils if       
respiration through the mouth is        
sufficient8--,i would answer that       
nostrils are made to be used when the   
mouth is employed in masticating its    
food4   ,sidenote3 ,of ,trees  #hg4  ,if
 a tree has been stripped of its bark in

 some spot1 nature makes provision for  
this and gives a greater supply of      
nourishing sap to the stripped portion  
than to any other1 so that in place of  
what has been taken away the bark grows 
thicker than in any other spot4  ,and so
 impetuous is the motion of the sap that
 when it reaches the spot which is to be
 healed1 it rises higher like a bounding
 ball1 in bubbles1 not unlike boiling   
water4   ,sidenote3 ,the ,leaves of     
,plants  #hh4  ,nature has so placed the
 leaves of the latest shoots of many    
trees that the sixth leaf is always     
above the first1 and thus in continued  
succession unless the rule is           
obstructed4  ,and this she has done for 
two useful purposes in the plant3       
firstly1 since the branches and the     
fruit of the following year spring from 
the bud or eye which is above and in    
contact with the juncture of the leaves1
 #agg the water which feeds the shoot   
may be able to run down and nourish the 
bud1 through the drop being caught in   

the hollow whence the leaf springs4     
,and the second advantage is that as    
these buds shoot in the following year1 
one will not be covered by the other1   
since the five shoots spring on five    
different sides4   ,sidenote3 ,from     
,known to ,unknown  #hi4  ,in order to  
arrive at knowledge of the motions of   
birds in the air1 it is first necessary 
to acquire knowledge of the winds1 which
 we will prove by the motions of water  
in itself1 and this knowledge will be a 
step enabling us to arrive at the       
knowledge of beings that fly between the
 air and the wind4   ,sidenote3 ,on the 
,flight of ,birds  #ij4  ,the reason of 
this is that small birds being without  
down cannot support the intense cold of 
the high altitudes in which the vultures
 and eagles or and other great birds1   
well supplied with down and clothed with
 many kinds of feathers1 fly4  ,again1  
the small birds1 having delicate and    
thin wings1 support themselves in the   
low air1 which is denser1 and they could

 not bear up in the rarer air1 which    
affords slighter resistance4            
,sidenote3 ,on the ,structure of ,wings 
#ia4  ,the shafts formed in the         
shoulders of the wings of birds have    
been so devised by ingenious nature #agh
 as to occasion a convenient pliancy in 
the direct impetus which often occurs in
 the swift flight of birds1 since she   
found it more practical to bend a small 
part of the wing in the direct flight   
than the whole of it4   ,sidenote3 ,on a
 ,fossil ,fish  #ib4  ,o time6 swift    
devourer of all created things6  ,how   
many kings1 how many nations1 thou hast 
overthrown1 how great changes of        
kingdoms and diverse vicissitudes have  
succeeded one another1 since the        
marvellous body of this fish1 which     
perished in the caverns and intricate   
recesses of the mountain4  ,now undone  
by time1 thou liest patient in this     
confined spot2 with thy fleshless and   
bare bones thou hast built the framework
 and the support of the mountain that is

 above thee4   ,sidenote3 ,we live by   
,others' ,death  #ic4  ,unconscious life
 remains in what is dead1 which when    
reunited to the stomach of living men1  
reacquires sentient and conscious life4 
,sidenote3 ,against ,doctors  #id4  ,men
 are chosen to be physicians in order to
 minister to diseases of which they are 
ignorant4   #ie4  ,every man wishes to  
amass money in order to give it to the  
physicians who are the destroyers of    
life2 they ought therefore to be rich4  
#agi  #if4  ,take pains to preserve thy 
health2 and thou wilt all the more      
easily do this if thou avoidest         
physicians1 because their drugs are a   
kind of alchemy1 and there are as many  
books on this subject as there are on   
medicine4   #ig4  ,oh6 meditators on    
perpetual motion1 how many vain projects
 of similar character you have devised6 
,go and join the seekers of gold4       
,sidenote3 ,against the ,seekers of     
,perpetual ,motion  #ih4  ,the water    
which flows in a river moves either     

because it is summoned or driven1 or    
because it moves of its own accord4  ,if
 it is summoned1--and ,i mean sought    
after1--who is the seeker8  ,if it is   
driven1 who is the driver8  ,if it moves
 of its own accord1 it gives evidence of
 reasoning2 and reasoning in bodies     
which continually change their shape is 
impossible1 because in such bodies there
 is no consciousness4   ,sidenote3      
,against ,occult ,sciences  #ii4  ,i    
wish to work miracles4  ,i may have less
 than other and less energetic men2 and 
those who wish to grow rich in a day    
live a long time in great poverty1 as   
happens1 and will always happen1 to     
alchemists1 who seek to make gold and   
silver1 and to the engineers who wish   
from still #ahj water to obtain life and
 perpetual motion1 and to the supreme   
fool1--the necromancer and the magician4
   ,sidenote3 ,of ,astrology  #ajj4     
,there is no part of astronomy which    
does not depend on the visual lines and 
on perspective1 the daughter of         

painting2 because the painter is he who 
by the necessity of his art has begotten
 perspective1 and it is impossible to do
 without lines which include all the    
various figures of the bodies begotten  
by nature and without which the art of  
geometry is blind4  ,and while the      
geometrist reduces every surface        
surrounded by lines to a square1 and    
each body to the figure of the cube1 and
 mathematics do the same with their cube
 roots and square roots1 these two      
sciences deal only with the continuous  
and discontinuous quantity1 but they do 
not deal with the quality which         
constitutes the beauty of the works of  
nature and the ornament of the world4   
#aja4  ,here the adversary will say that
 he does not want so much knowledge1 and
 the mere skill of depicting nature will
 suffice him4  ,to which ,i make reply  
that there is no greater error than to  
trust to our judgement without other    
reasoning1 as experience1 the enemy of  
alchemists1 necromancers and other      

foolish intellects1 has in all times    
proved4  #aha  ,sidenote3 ,against      
,alchemists  #ajb4  ,the lying          
interpreters of nature affirm that      
quicksilver is the common seed of all   
metals4  ,they do not bear in mind that 
nature raises substances according to   
the diversity of things which she wishes
 to produce in the world4   ,sidenote3  
,against ,necromancy  #ajc4  ,the belief
 in necromancy is reputed to be the most
 foolish of all human opinions4  ,it is 
the sister of alchemy which gives birth 
to simple and natural things2 but it is 
all the more reprehensible than alchemy1
 inasmuch as it brings forth nothing but
 what is like itself1 that is1 lies4    
,this is not the case with alchemy1     
which is confined to the simple products
 of nature1 and whose function cannot be
 performed by nature herself1 because in
 it there are no organic instruments    
with which it can work1 such as the     
hands are to man and which have enabled 
him to make glass1 c4  ,but necromancy1 

the flag and flying banner1 blown hither
 and thither by the winds1 is the guide 
of the silly multitude1 which constantly
 bears witness with gaping wonder to the
 countless effects of this art2 and     
whole books are written which declare   
that incantations and spirits are       
efficacious and speak without tongues   
and without vocal organs1 without which 
it is impossible to speak1 and carry the
 heaviest weights1 raising tempests and 
rain and #ahb transforming men into     
cats1 wolves and other beasts1 although 
they who affirm such things are the     
first to be transformed into beasts4    
,and certainly if such necromancy       
existed1 as is believed by lower        
intellects1 there is nothing on the     
earth which would be so effectual both  
as regards the service and detriment of 
man2 because if it is true that this art
 has the power to disturb the calm      
serenity of the atmosphere1 changing it 
into night and producing sparks and     
winds1 with fearful thunder and         

lightnings that fly through the         
darkness1 and overthrowing high         
buildings with violent winds and        
uprooting forests and striking armies   
and shattering and overwhelming them1   
and producing1 in addition to this1     
devastating storms which rob the        
peasants of the fruits of their toil1   
what kind of warfare is there so deadly 
to the enemy8  ,who in naval warfare can
 be compared with him who commands the  
winds and generates storms which ruin   
and sink any fleet whatsoever8          
,certainly he who could dispose of such 
violent forces would be the lord of     
nations1 and no human skill could resist
 his deadly power4  ,the hidden         
treasures and gems concealed in the body
 of the earth would be manifest unto    
him4  ,he would let himself be borne    
through the air from the east to the    
west1 and through all the opposed       
regions of the universe4  ,but why      
should ,i proceed further8  ,what thing 
is there which could not be effected by 

such an art8  ,nothing1 save #ahc the   
discovery of immortality4  ,and if it is
 true1 why has it not remained among men
 who so greatly desired it1 and led them
 to disregard any deity8  ,and ,i know  
that there are many who to satisfy a    
whim would destroy ,god and the         
universe4  ,and if necromancy has not   
remained with man in spite of its being 
so necessary to him it can never have   
existed1 nor will it ever exist         
according to the definition of the      
spirit which is invisible in the body1  
for in the elements there are no        
incorporate things1 for where there is  
no body there is a vacuum1 and a vacuum 
cannot exist in the elements because it 
would be immediately filled by them4    
,sidenote3 ,deceptiveness of the ,senses
  #ajd4  ,the eye in its given distances
 and by its given means deceives itself 
in the performance of its functions less
 than any other sense1 because it sees  
in straight lines which form a cone1 the
 base of which is the object it         

perceives1 and transmits it to the eye1 
as ,i intend to prove4 ,but the ear     
greatly deceives itself as to the       
position and distance of the objects it 
apprehends1 because the sonorous waves  
do not reach it in straight lines1 like 
those of the eye1 but by tortuous and   
reflex lines1 and often the most remote 
seem to be nearest1 owing to the        
peregrinations of such waves1 although  
the voice of the echo is transmitted to 
the sense by straight lines only4  ,the 
smell is less certain of the spot whence
 the odour arises1 but #ahd taste and   
touch alone come into direct contact    
with the object which they apprehend4   
,sidenote3 ,on the ,conception of       
,nothingness  #aje4  ,the smallest      
natural point is larger than all        
mathematical points1 and the proof of   
this is that the natural point has      
continuity1 and everything which has    
continuity is infinitely divisible2 but 
the mathematical point is indivisible   
because it is not a quantity4  ,every   

continuous quantity is mentally         
infinitely divisible4  ,among the       
magnitude of things which are among us1 
the chief of all is nothingness2 and its
 function extends to matter that does   
not exist1 and its essence is in time in
 the past or in the future1 and it has  
nothing of the present4  ,this          
nothingness has its part equal to the   
whole and the whole to the part1 and the
 divisible to the indivisible1 and      
produces the same result by addition or 
subtraction1 or if it be divided or     
multiplied1--as is proved by            
arithmeticians by their tenth character1
 which represents nothing4  ,and its    
power does not extend to the things of  
nature4  ,that which is called          
nothingness is found only in time and in
 words3 in time it is found in the past 
and future1 and not in the present2 and 
thus in words among things which are    
said to be nonexistent or impossible4   
,in time nothingness dwells in the past 
and the future1 and not at all in the   

present1 and in nature it resides among 
the things #ahe which are impossible4   
,whence from that which has been said1  
it has no being1 because where there is 
nothingness there would be a vacuum4    
,sidenote3 ,on ,spirits  #ajf4  ,with   
regard to this matter1 we have said on  
the previous page that the definition of
 a spirit is a power united with a body1
 because it cannot move of its own      
accord nor acquire any kind of motion4  
,and if you say that it moves itself1   
this cannot be within the elements1     
because if the spirit is an incorporate 
quantity this quantity is a vacuum and  
the vacuum does not exist in nature1 and
 if it did exist it would be immediately
 filled by the rushing in of the element
 in which the vacuum was formed4  ,so   
according to the definition of weight   
which runs3 ,gravity is an accidental   
power created by one element attracted  
to or suspended in another1 it follows  
that no element1 weighing nothing in its
 own element1 can have weight in the    

element which is above it and lighter   
than it2 for instance1 no one part of   
water has no more gravity or lightness  
than any other part1 but if you were to 
draw it up into the air1 it would       
acquire weight1 and this weight cannot  
sustain itself by itself2 and it must   
therefore inevitably fall1 and thus     
wherever there is a vacuum in water it  
will fall in4  ,the same thing would    
happen with a spirit among the elements 
where it would continuously generate a  
vacuum #ahf in whatever element it might
 find itself1 for which reason it is    
inevitable that it would move in a      
constant flight to the sky until it had 
quitted these elements4   ,sidenote3    
,has the ,spirit a ,body8  #ajg4  ,we   
have proved that a spirit cannot exist  
in the elements without a body1 nor move
 of itself by voluntary motion unless it
 be to rise upwards4  ,but now we will  
say that if such a spirit took a body   
made of air it would inevitably melt    
into air1 because if it remained united 

it would be separated and fall and form 
a vacuum1 as we have described above4   
,therefore if it desired to remain in   
the air it is necessary that it should  
blend with a quantity of air1 and if it 
were united with the air1 two           
difficulties arise3 that is1 that it    
will rarefy that portion of air with    
which it is mingled1 and this rarefied  
air will fly upwards and will not remain
 in the air which is heavier than       
itself2 and besides this the ethereal   
spiritual essence is disunited1 and its 
nature is changed1 for which reason that
 nature loses some of its first virtue4 
,there is in addition to these a third  
difficulty1 and this is that a body of  
this kind1 made of air and assumed by   
the spirits1 is exposed to the          
penetrating winds which continually     
sunder and scatter the united portions  
of the air1 eddying and whirling amidst 
the rest of the atmosphere2 therefore   
the spirit who would pervade #ahg this  
air would be dismembered or rent and    

broken up with the rending of the air of
 which it formed part4   #ajh4  ,it is  
impossible that the spirit1 incorporated
 with a certain quantity of air1 should 
move this air2 and this is proved by the
 passage where it is said that the      
spirit rarefies that portion of the air 
with which it is mingled4  ,this air    
therefore will rise high above the other
 air1 and the air will be set in motion 
by its own lightness and not by the     
volition of the spirit1 and if this air 
encounters a wind1 the air will be moved
 by the wind and not by the spirit which
 is incorporated in it4   ,sidenote3    
,can the ,spirit speak8  #aji4  ,in     
order to show whether the spirit can    
speak or not it is first necessary to   
define the voice and the manner of its  
origin4  ,the following will be our     
definition3 ,the voice is the movement  
of air in friction against a dense body1
 or a dense body in friction against the
 air 7which is the same idea71 and by   
this friction of the dense and the rare 

what is rare is condensed1 and          
resistance is caused2 and again1 when   
the rare in swift motion and the rare in
 slow motion come into contact1 they    
condense one another and produce sound1 
and a great noise is made4  ,the sound  
or murmur made by the rare moving       
through the rare #ahh with slow motion  
is like the great flame whence sounds   
issue in the air2 the exceedingly great 
noise made by the rare1 when the air    
which is rare and swift mingles with    
that which is rare and in slow motion1  
is like the flame of fire issuing from a
 great gun and striking against the air2
 likewise the flame when it issues from 
a cloud strikes the air as it begets the
 thunderbolt4  ,therefore we will say   
that the spirit cannot produce a voice  
unless the air be set in motion1 but    
since there is no air within1 it cannot 
discharge what it does not possess2 and 
if it wishes to move that air in which  
it is incorporated1 it is necessary that
 the spirit should multiply itself2 but 

that which has no quantity cannot be    
multiplied4  ,in the fourth place it is 
said1 that no rare body can move if it  
has not a stable spot whence it may take
 its motion1 and more especially is this
 the case when an element must move in  
its own element1 which does not move of 
itself1 excepting by uniform evaporation
 at the centre of the thing evaporated2 
as occurs in the case of the sponge     
squeezed in the hand under water1 whence
 the water escapes in every direction   
with equal motion through the spaces    
between the fingers of the hand which   
squeezes it4  ,as to whether the spirit 
has an articulate voice and can be      
heard1 and as to what are hearing and   
sight--the wave of the voice travels    
through the air as the images of objects
 travel to the eye4  #ahi  #aaj4  ,o    
mathematicians1 clear up this error6    
,the spirit cannot have a voice1 for    
where there is a voice there is a body1 
and where there is a body there is      
occupation of space1 which prevents the 

eye seeing what is behind that space2   
therefore a body fills all the          
surrounding air1 that is to say1 with   
its own image4   #aaa4  ,there can be no
 voice where there is no motion or      
percussion of the air1 there can be no  
percussion of the air where there is no 
instrument1 there can be no such thing  
as an immaterial instrument2 and this   
being so1 a spirit can have neither     
voice1 nor shape1 nor force2 and if it  
assumes a shape it can neither penetrate
 nor enter where the issues are closed4 
,if any one were to say that a spirit   
may take bodies of various shapes by    
means of concentrated and compressed    
air1 and by means of this instrument    
speak and move with force--,i reply to  
this argument that where there are no   
nerves or bones1 no force can be        
expended in any movement made by these  
imaginary spirits4     #aic             
,,bibliographical ,,note  ,,and  ,,table
 ,,of ,,references   ,,bibliographical  
,,note        99 99        99  ,only of 

late years have the manuscripts of      
,leonardo da ,vinci seen the light and  
the many difficulties been overcome     
which long proved an obstacle to their  
publication4  ,the labour of editing1   
deciphering and translating his many    
scattered and fragmentary codices was   
beyond the efforts of any single man4   
,the gratitude of the cultivated world  
is therefore due to those who1 like ,j4 
,p4 ,richter1 ,c4 ,kavaisson-,mollien1  
,luca ,beltrami1 ,piumati1              
,sabachnikoff1 and1 last but not least1 
the scholars of the ,academia del       
,lincei1 have so faithfully devoted     
themselves to this task1 which alone has
 made possible the present little work4 
,it was unavoidable that the form in    
which these manuscripts have been       
published should practically restrict   
their possession to the great libraries4
  ,but an excellent volume of selections
 from the writings of ,leonardo1 which  
are found in so haphazard a manner      
scattered through his codices and       

intermingled with his drawings and      
diagrams1 has been published in ,italy  
7,leonardo da ,vinci3 ,frammenti        
,letterari e ,storici1 ,florence1       
#aijj74  ,by kind permission of its     
editor1 ,dr4 ,solmi1 this has served as 
a basis for the text of the present     
translation4  ,the references1 however1 
have #aid been verified with the        
complete editions of ,leonardo's works1 
while a different arrangement has been  
made of the text4  ,l4 ,e4    ,sidenote3
 ,table of ,references  ,,table ,,of    
,,references  ,a ,les manuscrits de     
,lonard de ,vinci4  ,le manuscrit ,a de 
la ,bibliothque de l',institut4  ,edit4 
,ravaisson-,mollien1 vol4 i4  ,paris1   
#ahhj4  ,,ash ,i ,les manuscrits de     
,lonard de ,vinci4  ,les manuscrits ,h  
de la ,bibliothque de l',institut2 #bjch
 7,ash ,i7 et #bjcg 7,ash ,,ii7 de la   
,bibliotheque ,nationale4  ,edit4       
,ravaisson-,mollien1 vol4 vi4  ,paris1  
#ahia4  ,,ash ,,ii ,idem4  ,b ,les      
manuscrits de ,lonard de ,vinci4  ,les  

manuscrits ,b et ,d de la ,bibliothque  
de l',institut4  ,edit4                 
,ravaisson-,mollien1 vol4 ii4  ,paris1  
#ahhc4  ,c ,les manuscrits de ,leonard  
de ,vinci4  ,les manuscrits ,c1 ,e et ,k
 de la ,bibliothque de l',institut4     
,edit4  ,ravaisson-,mollien1 vol4 iii4  
,paris1 #ahhh4  ,c ,a ,il ,codice       
,atlantico di ,lonardo da ,vinci nella  
,biblioteca ,ambrosiana di ,milano4     
,rome2 ,milan1 #ahia4  7,still in course
 of publication47  ,d ,see ,b4  ,e ,see 
,c4  ,f ,les manuscrits de ,lonard de   
,vinci4  ,les manuscrits ,f et ,i de la 
,bibliothque de l',institut4  ,edit4    
,ravaisson-,mollien1 vol4 iv4  ,paris1  
#ahhi4  #aie  ,g ,les manuscrits de     
,lonard de ,vinci4  ,les manuscrits ,g1 
,l et ,m de la ,bibliothque de          
l',institut4  ,edit4                    
,ravaisson-,mollien1 vol4 v4  ,paris1   
#ahij4  ,h ,see ,ash ,i4  ,i ,see ,f4   
,l ,see ,g4  ,lu ,lonardo da ,vinci3    
,das ,buch vom ,malerei4  ,herausgegeben
 v4 ,h4 ,ludwig4  #c vols4  ,berlin1    

#ahhb4  ,m ,see ,g4  ,r ,the ,literary  
,works of ,leonardo da ,vinci4          
,compiled and edited from the original  
manuscripts by ,j4 ,p4 ,richter4  #b    
vols4  ,london1 #ahhc4  ,s ,leonardo da 
,vinci3 ,frammenti ,letterari e         
,filosofici4  ,trasceiti dal ,dr4       
,edmondo ,solmi4  ,florence1 #aijj4  ,t 
,il codice di ,lonardo da ,vinci nella  
,biblioteca del ,principe ,trivulzio4   
,edit4  ,l4 ,beltrami4  ,milan1 #ahib4  
,v ,u ,leonardo da ,vinci4  ,il codice  
del volo degli uccelli ed altre materie4
  ,edit4  ,sabachnikoff e ,piumati4     
,paris1 #ahic4    ,sidenote3 ,on ,life  
,,thoughts ,,on ,,life    ,page4   ,no4 
,reference4     ,page4   ,no4           
,reference4       #c     #a   ,r #d     
#d     #d   ,,ca #aai r      #c     #b  
,r #acci            #e     #e   ,lu #i  
#d     #c   ,r #hda             #e      
#f   ,r #aafi  #aif    ,page4   ,no4    
,reference4     ,page4   ,no4           
,reference4       #e     #g   ,s #fi    
#ad    #cf   ,r #hch      #f     #h   ,c

 ,a #aai r        #ad    #cg   ,lu #af  
#f     #i   ,c ,a #ia v         #ae     
#ch   ,lu #fe      #f    #aj   ,c ,a    
#aai r        #ae    #ci   ,s #if       
#f    #aa   ,s #ga             #ae      
#dj   ,b #d v      #g    #ab   ,r #aagh 
#ae    #da   ,f #if v      #g    #ac    
,s #gb             #ae    #db   ,c ,a   
#gi r      #g    #ad   ,t #b v          
#ae    #dc   ,s #ih      #h    #ae   ,c 
,a #aab r        #ae    #dd   ,s #ii    
#h    l#f   ,lu #fe            #af      
#de   ,g #dg r      #i    #ag   ,s #gd  
#af    #df   ,c ,a #aai v      #i    l#h
   ,s #ccf            l#f    #dg   ,r   
#hcg      #i    #ai   ,s #gd            
#ag    #dh   ,r #abaj      #i    #bj    
,r ll#ge           #ai    #di   ,i #ah r
      #i    #ba   ,m #eh v           #ai
    #ej   ,s #fg     #aj    #bb   ,v ,u 
#ab r         #ai    #ea   ,r #aace     
#aj    #bc   ,s #gf             #ai     
#eb   ,c ,a #afi v     #aj    #bd   ,c  
,a #aai r        #bj    #ec   ,s #aad   
#aa    #be   ,c ,a #aag r        #bj    

#ed   ,s #aae     #aa    #bf   ,c ,a #gf
 r         #ba    #ee   ,ash ,,ii #d r  
#aa    #bg   ,c ,a #aag r        #ba    
#ef   ,c ,a #ei r     #ab    #bh   ,c ,a
 #gf r         #ba    #eg   ,t #f r     
#ab    #bi   ,f #bg v           #ba     
#eh   ,g #gd v     #ab    #cj   ,s #hc  
#bb    #eh   ,s #aba     #ab    #ca   ,r
 #aaej           #bb    #fj   ,s #abb   
#ab    #cb   ,c ,a #aed r        #bb    
#fa   ,s #abc     #ac    #cc   ,c ,a    
#aed r        #bc    #fb   ,h #hi v     
#ac    #cd   ,c ,a #hf r         #bc    
#fc   ,s #afh     #ac    #ce   ,t #bj v 
#bc    #fd   ,f #di v  #aig    ,page4   
,no4  ,reference4     ,page4   ,no4     
,reference4      #bd    #fe   ,s #afi   
#cf    #id   ,c ,a #bi v     #bd    #ff 
,r #hdf            #cf    #ie   ,c ,a   
#ab r     #bd    #fg   ,r #abai         
#cf    #if   ,c ,a #ga v     #be    #fh 
,r #aahg           #cg    #ig   ,s #bje 
#be    #fi   ,r #hch            #cg     
#ih   ,t #cd ,r     #bg    #gj   ,c ,a  
#ij r         #cg    #ii   ,t #cd r     

#bh    #ga   ,c ,a #aai v        #cg    
#ajj   ,t #bg r     #bi    #gb   ,r #hci
            #cg   #aja   ,c ,a #ga r    
#bi    #gc   ,lu #dii           #ch     
#ajb   ,lu #gg     #cj    #gd   ,t #g v 
#ch   #ajc   ,r #aacb     #cj    #ge    
,s #ahj            #ci   #ajd   ,r #aacc
     #cj    #gf   ,r #iaf            #ci
   #aje   ,s #bjh     #ca    #gg   ,r   
#gih            #ci   #ajf   ,t #cdj    
#ca    #gh   ,s #ahg            #ci     
l#jg   ,t #ad v     #cb    #gi   ,c ,a  
#aai r        #ci   #ajh   ,c #aag v    
#cb    #hj   ,r #a              #ci     
#aji   ,g #di r     #cb    #ha   ,lu    
#bib           #dj   #aaj   ,s #bji     
#cc    #hb   ,s #bja            #da     
#aaa   ,h passim     #cd    #hc   ,h #fj
 r           #dd   ll#b   ,s #bad       
#cd    #hd   ,h #cb r           #de     
#aac   ,h #dh v     #cd    #he   ,s #bjb
            #de   #aad   ,s #bl#f       
#cd    #hf   ,c ,a #gf r         #de    
#aae   ,r #hbg     #ce    #hg   ,s #bjb 
#df   #aaf   ,r #hdd     #ce    #hh   ,h

 #cc v           #dg   #aag   ,r #hl#f  
#ce    #hi   ,s #bjc            #dg     
#aah   ,s #bba     #ce    #ij   ,t #cc v
           #dh   #aai   ,s #bba     #ce 
#ia   ,t #bc v           #dh   #abj   ,s
 #bbi     #ce    #ib   ,ash i #cd v     
#dh   #aba   ,c #ae v     #cf    #ic    
,c ,a #gf r         #ej   #abb   ,r     
#aceh  #aih    ,page4   ,no4            
,reference4     ,page4   ,no4           
,reference4      #ea   #abc   ,s #bag   
#ed   #abg   ,r #cjj     #eb   #abd   ,r
 #acee           #ee   #abh   ,s #chb   
#eb   #abe   ,lu #bd            #ee     
#abi   ,s #aii     #ec   #abf   ,lu #af 
,sidenote3 ,on ,art  ,,thoughts ,,on    
,,art      #ei     #a   ,c ,a #ada v    
#he    #bd   ,lu #bi     #fj     #b   ,s
 #bgd            #he    #be   ,lu #ca   
#fj     #c   ,lu #dch           #hg     
#bf   ,lu #cj     #fj     #d   ,lu #bg  
#hh    #bg   ,lu #cb     #fj     #e     
,lu #cd            #ij    #bh   ,s #bgf 
#fa     #f   ,lu #g             #ij     
#bi   ,lu #i     #fb     #g   ,lu #h    

#ij    #cj   ,lu #ac     #fd     #h     
,ash ,,ii #ai v      #ia    #ca   ,s    
#bge     #fe     #i   ,lu #b            
#ib    #cb   ,ash ,,ii #bj r     #ff    
#aj   ,lu #g             #ib    #cc     
,ash ,,ii #bf r     #ff    #aa   ,lu #ad
            #ic    #cd   ,ash ,,ii #be r
 #bd v     #fh    #ab   ,lu #aj     #fh 
#ac   ,lu #df            #ie    #ce     
,lu #ce     #fh    #ad   ,lu #ah        
#if    #cf   ,lu #cf     #fi    #ae     
,lu #bj            #ig    #cg   ,lu #ch 
#ga    #af   ,lu #ba            #ih     
#ch   ,lu #dj     #gb    #ag   ,lu #bb  
#ii    #ci   ,lu #da     #gc    #ah   ,s
 #bea           #ajj    #dj   ,lu #dje  
#gg    #ai   ,s #beg           #ajj     
#da   ,lu #fb     #hj    #bj   ,lu #bg  
#ajj    #db   ,r #dih     #hb    #ba    
,lu #bg           #ajj    #dc   ,lu #eg 
#hb    #bb   ,lu #bf           #aja     
#dd   ,ash ,,ii #af v     #hc    #bc    
,lu #bh           #aja    #de   ,lu #eh 
#aii    ,page4   ,no4  ,reference4      
,page4   ,no4  ,reference4     #aja     

#df   ,r #ajc           #aaf    #gj     
,lu #ajg    #ajb    #dg   ,r #ajd       
#aaf    #ga   ,s #ccg    #ajc    #dh    
,lu #djd          #aag    #gb   ,s #cch 
#ajd    #di   ,ash ,,ii #bbv      #aag  
#gc   ,s #ccf    #aje    #ej   ,lu #ed  
#aag    #gd   ,s #ccg    #aje    #ea    
,i #acj v         #aah    #ge   ,lu #ajh
    #aje    #eb   ,c ,a #gf v           
#aai    #gf   ,lu #aji    #ajf    #ec   
,c ,a #aai v       #abj    #gg   ,a #bc 
r    #ajf    #ed   ,g #h v              
#abj    #gh   ,k #aaj v    #ajf    #ee  
,ash ,,ii #ag v     #abj    #gi   ,s    
#cch    #ajg    #ef   ,c ,a #aha v      
#aba    #hj   ,lu #ae1 #be    #ajg      
#eg   ,s #bjj           #abe    #ha   ,r
 #ajba    #ajh    #eh   ,s #bhd         
#abe    #hb   ,lu #hjf    #aji    #ei   
,s #gh            #abg    #hc   ,ash ,i 
#ah v    #aaa    #fj   ,s #bhc          
#abh    #hd   ,ash ,i #ba r    #aaa     
#fa   ,g #cc r v        #abi    #he     
,ash ,i #cj v    #aaa    #fb   ,r #gif  
#acc    #hf   ,s #bl#f    #aab    #fc   

,ash ,,ii #bf r     #acd    #hg   ,ash  
,,ii #bb v    #aac    #fd   ,ash ,,ii   
#bh r     #acd    #hh   ,s #cce    #aac 
#fe   ,ash ,,ii #bf r     #ace    #hi   
,s #cch    #aad    #ff   ,ash ,,ii #be r
     #acf    #ij   ,s #cci    #aad      
#fg   ,ash ,,ii #bd v     #acg    #ia   
,s #cda    #aae    #fh   ,lu #ec        
#acg    #ib   ,s #cdb    #aaf    #fi    
,s #abb           #acg    #ic   ,s #cdj 
,sidenote3 ,on ,science  ,,thoughts ,,on
 ,,science     #ada     #a   ,lu #a     
#ada     #c   ,r #c    #ada     #b   ,r 
#aaj           #ada     #d   ,r #f  #bjj
    ,page4   ,no4  ,reference4          
,page4   ,no4  ,reference4     #adb     
#e   ,r #aaeg          #aed    #cd   ,f 
#f r    #adb     #f   ,g #if v          
#aee    #ce   ,f #h r    #adb     #g    
,t #ab r          #aee    #cf   ,f #cd v
    #adb     #h   ,lu #a            #aee
    #cg   ,g #cd r    #adc     #i   ,lu 
#cc           #aef    #ch   ,f #he v    
#adf    #aj   ,e #h v           #aef    
#ci   ,s #acf    #adf    #aa   ,r #aaef 

#aeh    #dj   ,s #ada    #adf    #ab    
,k #di r          #aeh    #da   ,s #aci 
#adf    #ac   ,i #ajb r1 v      #aeh    
#db   ,s #adj    #adg    #ad   ,a #bd r 
#aei    #dc   ,s #abh    #adh    #ae    
,s #abd           #afj    #dd   ,r #ijb 
#adh    l#f   ,t #cf v          #afa    
#de   ,s #ach    #adh    #ag   ,t #cf v 
#afa    #df   ,s #acg    #adh    #ah    
,h #ada r         #afa    #dg   ,s #acg 
#adh    #ai   ,e #bb r          #afa    
#dh   ,s #ach    #adi    #bj   ,i #fh r 
#afb    #di   ,s #aci    #adi    #ba    
,r #hei           #afb    #ej   ,s #aci 
#adi    #bb   ,f #eb r          #afb    
#ea   ,s #adb    #aej    #bc   ,s #abf  
#afc    #eb   ,c ,a #hj r    #aej    #bd
   ,s l#bg           #afd    #ec   ,h   
#ie r    #aea    #be   ,b #fc r         
#afd    #ed   ,h #ij r    #aea    #bf   
,s #abe           #afd    #ee   ,s #hh  
#aea    #bg   ,c #bf v          #afd    
#ef   ,f #cj v    #aea    #bh   ,a #fj r
          #afd    #eg   ,r #ajjj    #aea
    #bi   ,s #abd           #afe    #eh 

,r #igj    #aeb    #cj   ,c #bh v       
#afe    #ei   ,h #gg r    #aeb    #ca   
,r #hfj           #afe    #fj   ,r #ife 
#aec    #cb   ,s #aca           #aff    
#fa   ,r #iec    #aed    #cc   ,s #acb  
#aff    #fb   ,f #eb v  #bja    ,page4  
,no4  ,reference4     ,page4   ,no4     
,reference4     #afg    #fc   ,g #di v  
#agf    #hh   ,s #aah    #afg    #fd    
,k #bb            #agg    #hi   ,e #ed r
    #afh    #fe   ,s #aac           #agg
    #ij   ,c ,a #ff v    #afh    #ff    
,s #aac           #agg    #ia   ,e #eb v
    #afh    #fg   ,c ,a #adg v          
#agh    #ib   ,s #adh    #afh    #fh    
,e #ee v          #agh    #ic   ,s #afg 
#afh    #fi   ,s #hh            #agh    
#id   ,s #bjj    #afi    #gj   ,m #eg r 
#agh    #ie   ,s #bjj    #afi    #ga    
,r #ajg           #agi    #if   ,s #bjj 
#agj    #gb   ,c ,a #ccg v       #agi   
#ig   ,r #abjf    #agj    #gc   ,t #ci r
          #agi    #ih   ,k #aja v       
#aga    #gd   ,i #bjb           #agi    
#ii   ,r #gif    #aga    #ge   ,d #e r  

#ahj   #ajj   ,lu #ag    #agb    #gf    
,f #b v           #ahj   #aja   ,s #ff  
#agb    #gg   ,c ,a #ge v        #aha   
#ajb   ,s #abb    #agb    #gh   ,h #fg v
          #aha   #ajc   ,r #abac    #agc
    #gi   ,f #b v           #ahc   #ajd 
,s #aha    #agc    #hj   ,f #fi v       
#ahd   #aje   ,ash ,,iii #bg v    #agd  
#ha   ,s #abi           #ahe   #ajf   ,s
 #aib    #agd    #hb   ,c ,a #aec v     
#ahf   #ajg   ,r #abad    #agd    #hc   
,v ,u #c v         #ahg   #ajh   ,r     
#abae    #age    #hd   ,r #ihd          
#ahg   #aji   ,c ,a #ahg v    #age      
#he   ,s #adb           #ahi   #aaj   ,s
 #aif    #age    #hf   ,c ,a #gf r      
#ahi   #aaa   ,b #d ,v    #agf    #hg   
,c ,a #gf r       ,,of ,,this ,,volume  
,,translated ,,by ,,maurice ,,baring    
,,and ,,edited ,,by ,,lewis ,,einstein  
,,with ,,types  ,,decorations   ,,by    
,,herbert ,p4 ,,horne   ,,ccciii        
,,copies ,,were   ,,printed             
,,optimum   ,,vix ,,satis     ,,by ,d4  
,b4 ,,updike   ,,at ,,the ,,merrymount  

,,press   ,,boston ,,massachusetts      
,,in ,,the ,,month ,,of   ,,september   
,,mcm   ,,vi