Da Vinci code

Leonardo Da Vinci was born illegitimately to a peasant woman called Caterina in a province of Florence, in Italy, called Vinci. His father, Piero Da Vinci, was trained in the law. Like a phoenix rising from the ashes of this humble background he developed into a genius in every quarter. Eager to learn, he built up a knowledge in maths, science, biology and art. His mind was electric and he allowed it to wander unfenced into every domain which gave him the freedom to become an inventor and an artist of the utmost perfection.

Leonardo Da Vinci’s portrait in red chalk of ‘The Bearded Man’ an unknown character that years ago was believed to be a self-portrait of Leonardo but has since been dismissed as not being a replica of the artist’s facial features.

The Da Vinci Code

Most of what Leonardo Da Vinci knew was self-taught … he was an inspiration to us all and his legacy lives on as though he has left part of his very core, part of his spirit, behind. Leonardo, if he were alive today, would most likely think that we waste so much of our time when we could be learning, creating, developing and achieving so much more as we all have had greater advantages than he ever had. So …

• ‘Try and learn at least one new thing every day and then pass on your knowledge to someone else – do not keep it to yourself; do not waste it; knowledge is information and information is power – it takes us to new horizons and makes the world a better place to live.’