Leonardo da Vinci Quotes
Leonardo filled thousands of notebook pages. The standard English selection is Jean Paul Richter's edition of 1883, whose numbered paragraphs are cited below. Surprisingly, his most famous “quotes” are not in the notebooks at all.
4 real Leonardo da Vinci quotes, with sources
“Wisdom is the daughter of experience.”Leonardo da Vinci — Notebooks, ed. J. P. Richter (1883), §1150
“As a day well spent procures a happy sleep, so a life well employed procures a happy death.”Leonardo da Vinci — Notebooks, ed. J. P. Richter (1883), §1173
“The water you touch in a river is the last of that which has passed, and the first of that which is coming. Thus it is with time present.”Leonardo da Vinci — Notebooks, ed. J. P. Richter (1883), §1174
“Just as eating against one's will is injurious to health, so study without a liking for it spoils the memory, and it retains nothing it takes in.”Leonardo da Vinci — Notebooks, ed. J. P. Richter (1883), §1176
Famous quotes Leonardo da Vinci never said
“Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.”The earliest known use of the exact phrase is a 1952 newspaper article; the link to Leonardo only appears decades later. It is not in his notebooks.
“Art is never finished, only abandoned.”A paraphrase of the French poet Paul Valéry, who said this about poems.
“Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Being willing is not enough; we must do.”From Goethe's novel Wilhelm Meister's Journeyman Years, not Leonardo.
Who was Leonardo da Vinci?
Painter of the Mona Lisa and The Last Supper, Leonardo filled his notebooks with flying machines, anatomy, water studies and engineering, written in mirror script. He is the model of the Renaissance mind: endlessly curious and rarely finished. Read more on Wikipedia.
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What is Leonardo da Vinci's most famous quote?
One of the best known is “Wisdom is the daughter of experience.” (Notebooks, ed. J. P. Richter (1883), §1150)
Did Leonardo da Vinci really say “Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.”?
No. The earliest known use of the exact phrase is a 1952 newspaper article; the link to Leonardo only appears decades later. It is not in his notebooks.
Did Leonardo da Vinci really say “Art is never finished, only abandoned.”?
No. A paraphrase of the French poet Paul Valéry, who said this about poems.
Did Leonardo da Vinci really say “Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Being willing is not enough; we must do.”?
No. From Goethe's novel Wilhelm Meister's Journeyman Years, not Leonardo.
Where do these Leonardo da Vinci quotes come from?
Leonardo filled thousands of notebook pages. The standard English selection is Jean Paul Richter's edition of 1883, whose numbered paragraphs are cited below. Surprisingly, his most famous “quotes” are not in the notebooks at all.
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