Prophecies
Riddles in the Language of Apocalypse
Creatures shall be seen upon the earth who will always be fighting one with another, with very great losses and frequent deaths on either side. These shall set no bounds to their malice.
— Leonardo da Vinci (of humans)
Overview
Leonardo's "Prophecies" are one of the strangest and most entertaining sections of the notebooks. They're riddles — descriptions of common objects and everyday activities written in the terrifying language of biblical prophecy. The trick is to figure out what mundane thing each apocalyptic passage actually describes.
Some are witty. Some are dark. Some are both. They were probably written as entertainment for courtly gatherings at the Sforza court in Milan, but they also reveal Leonardo's sharp satirical eye and his uncomfortable awareness of human cruelty — particularly toward animals.
Of Human Nature
The deadliest riddles
Of Money and Gold:
That shall come forth from hollow caves which shall cause all the nations of the world to toil and sweat with great agitation, anxiety and labour, in order to gain its aid.
Of the Fear of Poverty:
The malevolent and terrifying thing shall of itself strike such terror into men that almost like madmen, while thinking to escape from it, they will rush in swift course upon its boundless forces.
Of Advice:
He who shall be most necessary to whoever has need of him will be unknown, and if known will be held of less account.
C.A. 37 v. c
Of Everyday Things
Common objects made terrifying
Of Cannon Which Come Forth Out of a Pit and from a Mould:
There shall come forth from beneath the ground that which by its terrific report shall stun all who are near it, and cause men to drop dead at its breath, and it shall devastate cities and castles.
C.A. 129 v. a
Of Snakes Carried by Swans:
Serpents of huge size will be seen at an immense height in the air fighting with birds.
Of Men Who Sleep upon Planks Made from Trees:
Men will sleep and eat and make their dwelling among trees grown in the forests and the fields.
Of Food Which Has Been Alive:
A large part of the bodies which have had life will pass into the bodies of other animals, that is the houses no longer inhabited will pass piecemeal through those which are inhabited, ministering to their needs and bearing away with them what is waste; that is to say that the life of man is made by the things which he eats, and these carry with them that part of man which is dead.
That last one — "Of Food Which Has Been Alive" — is essentially a description of the food chain and digestion, rendered as prophecy. "The houses no longer inhabited" are dead animal bodies; "those which are inhabited" are living human bodies. It's scientifically accurate and poetically horrifying at the same time. -D
Of Christians
Leonardo's sharpest barb
Of Christians:
There are many who hold the faith of the Son and only build temples in the name of the Mother.
Two sentences. No hedging, no qualification. In Renaissance Italy, this was genuinely dangerous to write down. -D
Of Dreaming
The most beautiful riddle
Of Dreaming:
It shall seem to men that they see new destructions in the sky, and the flames descending therefrom shall seem to have taken flight and to flee away in terror; they shall hear creatures of every kind speaking human language; they shall run in a moment, in person, to divers parts of the world without movement; amidst the darkness they shall see the most radiant splendours. O marvel of mankind! What frenzy has led you thus?
These are Leonardo's party tricks — riddles designed to amaze and amuse an audience. But read them carefully and you'll find genuine anger underneath the cleverness, especially about how humans treat other living things. The line between joke and jeremiad is razor-thin. -D