Leonardo da Vinci Quotes
Fire is to represent truth because it destroys all sophistry and lies; and the mask is for lying and falsehood which conceal truth.
da Vinci, Leonardo. The Literary Works of Leonardo da Vinci. Translated by Jean Paul Richter, vol. 2, Sampson Low, Marston, Searle & Rivington, 1883, p. 6.
This is one of the proverbs of King Solomon of the Jews, son of King David. This quotation urges a leader to avoid advisors and appointees who do not tell the truth.
Leonardo da Vinci was an Italian polymath of the High Renaissance who was active as a painter, draughtsman, theorist, engineer, scientist, sculptor and architect. While his fame initially rested on his achievements as a painter, he also became known for his notebooks, in which he made drawings and notes on a variety of subjects, including anatomy, astronomy, botany, cartography, painting, and paleontology. Leonardo's genius epitomized the Renaissance humanist ideal, and his collective works compose a contribution to later generations of artists rivaled only by that of his younger contemporary and fellow founder of the High Renaissance, Michelangelo.
