Codex on the Flight of Birds

This codex consists of 17 foglios (21 x 15 cm) of designs of flying machines, along with drawings and notes about flight, the features of birds, air resistance, air currents and flying machine designs. With ingenious insight and his usual focus on natural phenomena, Leonardo sought to realize one of the most eagerly pursued dreams of people everywhere since ancient times: human flight. In 2008, a group of scholars claimed to have spotted a young self-portrait of Leonardo on one of the foglios which was subsequently covered by the artist’s notes.