Leonardo Da Vinci

By Casey and Gabbie Pepin

• Gabbie: Before we start this interview, I would like to have some back round information. So Leonardo, can you tell me a bit about your family and when and where you were born?

• Leonardo: Yes. I was born on April 15, 1452. I was born in the Tuscan hill town of Vinci, in the lower valley of the Arno River, in the territory of Florence. My parents were Messer Piero Fruosino di Antonio da Vinci my father, and my mother Caterina.

• Gabbie: What about your later life, did you ever get married or have children?

• Leonardo: No. I didn’t get married or have children. Though I did have a very close lady friend who’s name was Isabelle d’Este. I once painted a portrait of her.

• Gabbie: Did you spend most of your life in Vinci?• Leonardo: After I was born in Vinci I moved to

Anchiano where I lived for the first 5 years of my life. Then I moved back to Vinci to live in my uncle’s, father’s, and grandparent’s household.

• Gabbie: Leonardo da Vinci. That’s an interesting name. What does it mean?

• Leonardo: Well actually my full name is Leonardo di ser Piero da Vinci. Which means “Leonardo (son) of (Mes)ser Piero, from Vinci”. You see I have no surname. Da Vinci simply means ‘of Vinci’

• Gabbie: We just saw some of your inventions and ideas that became the corner stone for modern day thinking. Can you tell me anything about them?

• Leonardo: Yes. Many of them were war machines that I have built or have blue prints for. This one is now sometimes described as an armored car, but whatever that is, I was just thinking that it would be very useful in battle.

• Gabbie: What were some of the ranged weapons you built?

• Leonardo: I built cannons, a form of machine guns, war ships, and more.

• Gabbie: So you built many war machines. Was that what you enjoy doing?

• Leonardo: NO! I did not like it, but sometimes that’s what I had to do. I was a humanitarian.

• Gabbie: As a humanitarian what did you do to express yourself?

• Leonardo: I was a vegetarian, and it was often a hobby of mine to buy caged birds and set them free. I had a very strong respect for life.

• Gabbie: With the time you spent with birds did you ever dream of flying?

• Leonardo: Yes. I also had many blue prints of flying machines, including helicopters and gliders.

• Gabbie: Leonardo some people believe that you are the father of modern day science. What do you say about this? And what inventions do you think people are basing this on?

• Leonardo: I say thank you to those people and I’m honored. I believe they might be thinking of the canal system I designed to irrigate fields and that provided transportation. I also created a moving bridge for the Duke of Milan.

• Gabbie: What other ideas and inventions are you known for?

• Leonardo: I established modern techniques of highly accurate scientific illustrations of Embryo in the womb. I am also known for my drawings of the human anatomy. But some people only know of me from some of my blueprints that I was never able to complete.