Painter, designer, inventor, anatomist, musician, and philosopher, Leonardo da Vinci is the most versatile of all the great Renaissance artists, yet also the most mysterious. Although his great achievements have been recognized for centuries, he remains paradoxically an enigmatic figure. This book paints the most accurate and thorough portrait of the endlessly curious individual behind the legend of the "Universal Man": from his early years and apprenticeship in Verrocchio's workshop in Florence to the years he spent in the service of the powerful in Renaissance Italy – the Medici, the Sforza, and the Borgias; from his relationship with Michelangelo and Machiavelli, and his reputation as one of the greatest figures of his time, to his final days. Nicholl consults a wide variety of sources and presents a masterful biography, illustrated, full of enlightening details and perceptive observations, that manages to penetrate Leonardo's personality and his famous flights of mind. INCLUDES ILLUSTRATIVE MATERIAL WRITTEN ABOUT THE BOOK This biography, where no detail seems superfluous – without strict documentation negatively affecting the narrative flow – is a captivating book for both the specialist scholar and the average reader. The edition is particularly well-crafted, as is the translation. Anastasios Vistonitis, TO VIMA of Sunday It reads quickly. Interest is constantly renewed from page to page. It gives the impression of being a multi-threaded, relentless novel. However, it is a biography. Exhaustive indeed. This work is so thorough that the reader may at some point think that Leonardo himself is giving a lesson in painting, physics, and mathematics! Giorgos Veis, KYRIAKATIKI AVGI Without intending to demystify Leonardo's achievements, it seeks his human side. It refuses to admire the "god-given" genius. Through an ocean of information, Nicholl retrieves the idiosyncrasy of the multifaceted creator. Giorgos Karouzakis, LIFO With this biography, which connects elements from primary sources (manuscripts, drawings, anecdotes, third-party descriptions-narratives, later centuries' bibliography), the inquisitive reader has at their disposal countless opportunities for substantial engagement with the "Da Vinci phenomenon." Vasilis Rouvalis, ELEFTHEROTYPIA One of the advantages of this particular biography, beyond the multitude of elements it presents, is that the author does not approach Da Vinci from the perspective of an admirer. Admiration is, of course, self-evident, but Nicholl stands more on the side of the scholar and thus allows the reader to appreciate and draw their own conclusions. Elpida Pasamichali, ELEFTHEROS TYPOS