The genius of Leonardo da Vinci is now revealed in the virtual world as his ‘Codex Atlanticus’ (Atlantic Codex) has been digitised.
Leonardo’s largest bound set of drawings and writings, the Codex can be accessed via smartphones, tablets like the iPad, media players such as the iPod touch, and computers thanks to an initiative by the Milanese library that owns it, the Biblioteca Ambrosiana, along with Italian publisher De Agostini and multimedia developer Alphabeti.
Housed in the 17th-century Catholic library, the Codex consists of 12 volumes and 1,119 pages of Da Vinci’s work from 1478 to 1519 on topics including weaponry, musical instruments, mathematics, flight and botany.
‘The Ultimate Codex Experience’ app is available on iTunes for €7.99. It includes high-definition drawings, animations and games, allowing users to read Leonardo’s writing with an innovative ‘mirror’ instrument.
The Biblioteca Ambrosiana is making ‘The Secrets of Leonardo’ app available for €2.99. It re-presents all 24 exhibitions dedicated to the Codex staged at both the library and the Basilica of Santa Maria delle Grazie in Milan until 2015.
Both apps are available on the project’s website.
The move to digitise the Codex may have just come in time because in 2008 it was discovered that mercury salts added to protect the Codex from mold have stained and swollen its pages.
