Leonardo da Vinci's Sketches of Structurally Reciprocal Designs

Description: 

These sketches show some of Leonardo da Vinci’s designs that could be incorporated into roofs, domes, or other structures. Unlike most other architectural designs during da Vinci’s time, these designs contained complex patterns of reciprocating structures; as a result, da Vinci claims for one design that “the arch stays without any force at all.” Though not put into practice, these designs illustrate da Vinci’s role as a visionary engineer and architect who was unafraid to break away from the status quo - as also evidenced by his design for a self-supporting arched bridge. They were a part of the Codex Atlanticus, a twelve-volume bound set of da Vinci’s work in science, engineering, music, and architecture from 1478 to 1519 that is preserved in the Biblioteca Ambrosiana in Milan.

Sources:

Codex Atlanticus. (n.d.). Retrieved May 16, 2019, from http://www.turismo.milano.it/wps/portal/tur/en/arteecultura/capolavorieo...

Williams, K. (2008). Transcription and Translation of Codex Atlanticus, fol. 899 v. Nexus Network Journal, 10(1), 13-16. Retrieved May 16, 2019, from https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00004-007-0052-z

Image from article by Williams cited above.

Associated Place(s)

Layers

Timeline of Events Associated with Leonardo da Vinci's Sketches of Structurally Reciprocal Designs

Leonardo da Vinci Incorporates Structural Reciprocity in Other Designs

circa. 1478 to circa. 1519

Leonardo da Vinci demonstrated a thorough understanding of structural reciprocity not just through his arched bridge design, but also through his design of complex geometric structures that could form domes or roofs. He was one of the first scientists in the West to propose complex architectural designs composed of reciprocal structures that extended into three dimensional space. This was revolutionary for the time, as much of Western architecture was predicated upon hierarchical, rather than reciprocal, logic. In the Codex Atlanticus, da Vinci proposed a series of six designs of interconnected, reciprocal geometric shapes. Though the exact date of these designs is not identified, they most likely informed or went hand-in-hand with da Vinci’s work on the arched bridge. Both indicate that da Vinci was thinking about space in innovative ways that no engineers or architects had done before.

Sources:

Pugnale, A., & Sassone, M. (2014). Structural Reciprocity: Critical Overview and Promising Research/Design Issues. Nexus Network Journal, 16(1), 9-35. Retrieved May 16, 2019, from link.springer.com/article/10.1…

Taddei, M. (2006). [Unique edition of the Codex Atlanticus as a box. Made by Mario Taddei in the 2007]. Retrieved May 16, 2019, from www.mariotaddei.net_' onclick='void(0)'>commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Fil…(27b).jpg

Photo, taken from Wikimedia Commons, is free to use under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 License.

Leonardo da Vinci Incorporates Structural Reciprocity in Other Designs

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Artist: 

  • Leonardo da Vinci

Image Date: 

circa. 1478