Codex Ashburnham (I & II)

Overview

The Codex Ashburnham consists of two manuscripts that were stolen from the Paris Manuscripts by Count Guglielmo Libri, a mathematician who had been entrusted with access to the Institut de France's collections. They represent pages removed from Manuscript A (68 pages) and Manuscript B (26 pages).

The Theft

The mutilation of Manuscripts A and B was first discovered in 1848. Libri sold the stolen pages to the Earl of Ashburnham in 1875, which is how they acquired their current name. It is impossible to avoid the inference that the theft in each case was the work of Count Libri — who also stole the Codex on the Flight of Birds from Manuscript B.

The two manuscripts were eventually returned to France and are now in the Bibliothèque Nationale. They have been included in the facsimile edition of the manuscripts of the Institut de France published by M. Ravaisson-Mollien.

Codex Ashburnham I (from MS A)

68 pages on painting theory — the art and science of representation, including studies of light, shadow, and color theory.

Codex Ashburnham II (from MS B)

26 pages on urban planning and military architecture — including Leonardo's designs for an ideal city and fortification designs.