INTRODUCTION

...undoubtedly forming, along with others, an originally complete book, which was probably written by Leonardo in 1489 ⁽¹⁾.

Of these 43 sheets, five—as we will indicate in the appropriate place—have the recto and verso the front and back of a leaf blank, and one (both recto and verso) deals exclusively with reproductive organs and functions; therefore, it will form part of Leonardo’s book on generation, which likewise belongs to the Royal Library at Windsor.

There are, therefore, 79 original pages published here, containing 193 figures in addition to the writings.

We provide a heliotype reproduction an early photographic printing process using gelatin to create high-quality prints of these pages in their original size and in an order that—based on many minutely studied clues—almost always coincides with the one established by Leonardo.

In this regard, we must note that some sheets are marked with ancient letters, and some with ancient and modern numbers; to be precise, we have recorded these marks in square brackets because they are not in Leonardo’s hand. However, they do not serve at all as a guide for the pagination.

The diplomatic transcription diplomatic transcription: a precise, letter-for-letter copy of the original text, preserving all original spelling, abbreviations, and punctuation therefore records, as we have stated previously, everything the original manuscript contains with the utmost accuracy; in essence, it is nothing more than a second reproduction of the manuscript in typographic characters accessible to everyone ⁽²⁾.

To this corresponds the explanatory critical transcription, which scrupulously maintains the integrity of the writing, changing only certain incidental details where such changes are necessary for a proper understanding.

The first transcription makes the text readable; the second makes it understandable ⁽³⁾.

Alongside these two transcriptions is the French translation, intended to bring the manifestations of Leonardo’s genius within reach of a greater number of scholars.

(1) Folio 42 recto, page 251: "On the 2nd day of April 1489, a book titled 'on the human figure'" original: de figura umana.
(2, 3) Codex on the Flight of Birds published by T. Sabachnikoff. Transcriptions and notes by G. Piumati, pages 40-42.