Charles Nicholl

'I'm leaving Europe! The sea air will burn my lungs. Lost climates will tan me. To swim, to trample the grass, to hunt, and of course to smoke; to drink liquor as strong as molten metal. I will come back with limbs of iron, a dark skin, a burning eye. I will have gold; I will be lazy and brutal.'...

The definitive and hugely enjoyable biography of the most mysterious genius of the Renaissance is here in paperback. Leonardo da Vinci is the most mysterious of all the great artists, continuing to inspire and intrigue centuries after his death. Who lies behind the legend of the 'Renaissance genius'? What is the real story behind his elusive masterpieces and tantalizing notebooks?...