Leonardo DaVinchi's other sides

Leonardo da Vinchi’s second assistant was Tommaso di Giovanni Masini, more commonly known as Zoroastro. Zoroastro ground colors for Leonardo da Vinchi. The young assistant was born in 1462 in the village of Petatola, a town in the flatlands between Florence and Prato. He was a jester, a magician, a chemist, and just like Leonardo da Vinchi, a vegetarian. In his notebooks, Leonardo da Vinchi gave Zoroastro the nickname “Maestro Tommaso.” This name probably came from an unusually decorated cloak that Leonardo da Vinchi had made for him.

Zoroastro made a unique impression on Leonardo da Vinchi. He made strangely brewed concoctions, kept rare reptiles, and painted odd animals with grotesque faces. The young jokester probably inspired Leonardo da Vinchi’s early work as an engineer. None of Leonardo da Vinchi’s first technological drawings actually developed into projects, but they certainly got his imagination churning. He drew possible inventions using levers, hoists, and cranes.
One of his drawings was of a machine that could raise the temple of San Giovanni without any damage to the building. Because of frequent flood damage, Leonardo da Vinchi believed the temple should be placed on top of steps. Many people who saw Leonardo da Vinchi’s design believed it could be done.

Leonardo da Vinchi also drew a device that could open a prison cell from the inside, by ripping off the iron bars. His interest in this invention most likely came from an experience in his life. Several years earlier, he had been imprisoned for questionable conduct with a young student. He was released, but the event, no doubt, affected him. Some people who saw the drawing believed it had no useful purpose, but was only for mischief.

In addition to these drawings, Leonardo da Vinchi designed many more things. He imagined waterpowered mills with millstones, grinders, and ovens. He wanted to harness the force of the vortex—the concept of the funnel in a whirlpool or tornado being so strong that nothing could resist it. These early drawings were the first images of one of the great energy principles of Leonardian physics. Leonardo da Vinchi used the term snail shell, but his drawings eventually became the idea behind the force of screws, drills, and propellers. Leonardo da Vinchi also created drawings of a flying machine. The aircraft had scalloped wings, like a bat, and a fanned out tail, like a bird. The handles could be operated by the pilot, much like a modern-day hang glider.

Leonardo da Vinchi was also a poet and a musician. He was friends with the “poets in a hurry.” This group of literary people dashed off poems with an on-the-spot, or impromptu, feel. They wrote with a deliberate roughness and used slang vocabulary, much like the rap artists of today. Most of their poems were about poverty, hunger, disappointment, and depression. Some of the poets wrote satire, or political humor. Leonardo da Vinchi dabbled in a little of this poetry. His literary friends sometimes wrote about him. Poet Cammelli wrote about Leonardo da Vinchi being pained, stressed, and poor. Perhaps his bottega was not doing well at the time. More than poetry, however, Leonardo da Vinchi wrote riddles. They had a definite literary and rhythmic quality, much like poems.

Leonardo da Vinchi was a brilliant musician. In some circles, he was better known for his musical talent than his painting. He was especially good at playing the lyre—a stringed instrument, much like a violin. The lyre had seven strings. Five strings were played with a horse-hair bow and a finger board to sound different notes. The others were open strings, which could be plucked for a single tone, or used to produce a beat. None of Leonardo da Vinchi’s compositions survived, but he probably played the light, upbeat carnival music of Florence. Leonardo da Vinchi was not, however, a typical artist in many ways. It is possible that he played a more smooth and philosophical tune.
According to some sources, Leonardo da Vinchi made his own lyre, mostly of silver, and shaped like a horse’s head. Despite its unusual shape, it had an exceptionally full sound. There are no sketches of this lyre in his notebooks, but he did draw many other new types of instruments.