The Life of Leonardo da Vinci Trivia Quiz

Answer: 1452

Leonardo da Vinci was born in Vinci, a town located near Florence in Tuscany, Italy. His full name was Lionardo di ser Piero da Vinci, which translates to "Leonardo. (son) of (mes) ser Piero from Vinci".

Leonardo's father Piero Fruosino di Antonio da Vinci was a Florentine notary, who was living with Leonardo's mother Caterina. However, Caterina and Piero were not married at the time of Leonardo's birth.

Not much is known about Leonardo's early life, other than for a short time he lived in Anchiano (where his mother originated from) and with his father in Vinci.

Answer: Verrocchio

At the age of fourteen, the young Leonardo da Vinci became the apprentice to Andrea di Cione - better known as the artist Andrea del Verrocchio. At Verrocchio's workshop. Leonardo was employed as a studio boy. Here Leonardo learnt sculpture, drawing, modelling, as well as metallurgy, casting, leather working, mechanics and carpentry. In addition, Leonardo da Vinci was also admitted to the Guild of Saint Luke - a guild famous for its artists and also doctors of medicine.

It was these skills that Leonardo da Vinci would use during his life to become one of the best known men of the Renaissance era for the wide range of work that is associated with him.

Answer: Duke of Milan

Having worked for Lorenzo de' Medici for a short while after leaving Verrocchio's workshop Medici sent Leonardo to Ludovico Sforza - the Duke of Milan with a peace offering of a silver lyre in the shape of a horses head.

At the time, Lorenzo de' Medici was the leader of the Florentine Empire, and head of the powerful Medici family, who despite an assassination attempt that claimed the life of his brother had risen in prominence in Northern Italy.

Ludovico Sforza, also had faced a power struggle to become Duke of Milan after the death of his elder brother Galeazzo Maria. Sforza, like Medici was a patron of the arts, and is cited as having worked with Leonardo da Vinci, introducing Leonardo to paint with pastels.

Answer: The Vitruvian Man

Around 1490, Leonardo da Vinci took an interest in studying human physiology, attending the dissection of corpses to produce a number of detailed sketches of the human anatomy. Amongst these sketches was the renowned "Vitruvian Man" - also known as "Le proporzioni del corpo umano secondo Vitruvio".

This was a sketch of a man inside a circle, with his arms and legs in two different positions to show the geometry of a human being first defined by the Roman architect Vitruvius in the third of his series of books entitled his book "De Architectura"' .

Leonardo da Vinci allegedly based his sketch on a passage taken from "De Architectura" which illustrated the various proportions of human anatomy. The sketch of "Vitruvian Man", is now kept at the Gallerie dell'Accademia in Venice in Italy and occasionally put on public display.

Answer: Luca Pacioli

Circa 1496, Leonardo da Vinci began working with Fra Luca Bartolomeo de Pacioli, who was a Franciscan friar, and credited with being the "Father of Bookkeeping". Pacioli was also known as Luca di Borgio, after his place of birth, Borgo Santo Sepolcro which is now known as Sansepolcro, a town located in the Italian region of Tuscany.

Educated in his native language - as opposed to Latin - Pacioli moved to Venice where he became a private tutor. In addition, he continued his own studies into mathematics.

After accepting an invitation to work for Ludovico Sforza -the Duke of Milan - Pacioli moved into the residence of Leonardo da Vinci. Working alongside Pacioli, Leonardo learnt mathematics, collaborating with Pacioli in his work. However, when the Duke of Milan was overthrown in the Second Italian War - by French troops loyal to King Louis VII - Leonardo and Pacioli fled to Venice, along with Leonardo's assistant, Salai.

Answer: Milan

One of Leonardo da Vinci's most famous paintings is the painting of "The Last Supper", depicting Jesus Christ and his disciples as described in the Gospel of John. The painting depicts the consternation amongst the disciple, with Jesus having just announced that one of them would betray him. The painting itself was one of a number painted for Ludovico Sforza, and located in the refectory (dining room) in the convent, close to the tomb of Sforza's father Francsesco.
Although not a true fresco - a type of painting done on wet plaster - Leonardo sealed the masonry with plaster, before painting the mural with a combination of tempera and oil paint. At the other end of the refectory is the "Crusifixion", a fresco by Giovanni Donato da Montorfano to which Leonardo added figures of the Sforza family.

Located in the convent of Santa Maria delle Grazie in Milan, little remains of what Leonardo da Vinci actually painted. This is due mainly down to conservation efforts, environmental issue and damage caused to the mural over the years. In 1943, "The Last Supper" was almost destroyed when Allied bombs hit the convent, causing widespread damage. It was only by chance "The Last Supper" was saved due to it being covered over with timber, sandbags and scaffolding.

Answer: Cesare Borgia

In 1502, Leonardo da Vinci entered the service of Cesare Borgia, a member of the infamous Borgia family, headed by Roderic Borgia who became Pope Alexander VI. It is said that Cesare was the inspiration for Niccolò Machiavelli's novel, "The Prince".

Leonardo travelled throughout Italy with Cesare, acting as his military engineer and architect after creating a map Cesare's stronghold in Imola that impressed Cesare. In addition, Leonardo also created another map for Cesare, outlining the strategic positions and lay of the land in the Chiana Valley which is located between Tuscany and Umbria. It was towards the end of his service with Cesare, that Leonardo da Vinci returned to Florence, rejoining the Guild of Saint Luke.

Answer: Mona Lisa

Thought to be been started around 1503, the "Mona Lisa" is not only one of Leonardo da Vinci's, but the world's most famous pieces of art. Painted on a panel made from Lombardy Popular, the subject for the Mona Lisa is generally believed to be Lisa del Giocondo, the wife of a merchant named Francesco del Giocondo. As with a number of other works of art painted by Leonardo da Vinci, the "Mona Lisa" took some time to complete, with some reports indicating that he was still working on the portrait towards the end of his life.

Although originally believed that the "Mona Lisa was painted without eyebrows and eyelashes, in 2007, the French engineer Pascal Cotte stated that ultra-high definition scans of the painting suggest that it did once have these features. However, it is believed these were lost over time due to cleaning and restoration.

Answer: Francis I

Towards the end of his life, Leonardo da Vince had moved initially to Rome, residing in the Cortile del Belvedere - part of the Vatican City.

Upon the recapture of Milan by King Francis I of France, Leonardo was invited by Pope Leo X to attend a meeting with Francis I in Bologna in 1515. Here Leonardo was commissioned to make an automaton in the form of a lion, whose chest opened up to reveal a bouquet of lilies.

The following year, Francis I invited Leonardo da Vinci to move to France, to reside near the Château d'Amboise, his royal palace in the Loire Valley. It is Leonardo's association with Francis I that resulted in the "Mona Lisa" becoming part of the French royal family collection.

Answer: 1519

In 1519, Leonardo da Vinci passed away at his residence of Clos Lucé, close to the Château d'Amboise where Francis I had his royal residence and connected to the Château d'Amboise by a 500 metre long tunnel. Legend has it that Leonardo died in the arms of Francis I. As such the scene has been depicted in painting by the likes of Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres, Angelica Kauffman and François-Guillaume Ménageot.
Built during the mid 15th century by Hugues d'Amboise (and originally named the Château du Clos Lucé) it was once owned by Charles VIII of France, acquired for his wife Anne of Brittany. Clos Lucé is now a museum, dedicated to the life of Leonardo da Vinci and his work, containing a number of models, based on various designs created by Leonardo during his life.