The Notebooks of Leonardo Da Vinci Complete


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magnify the size of the window and diminish the shadow of a man in  
such a way as that when the man makes that dim shadow of himself,  
approach to that which defines the real size of the window, he will  
see the shadows where they come into contact, dim and confused from  
the strength of the light, shutting off and not allowing the solar  
rays to pass; the effect of the shadow of the man cast by this  
contact will be exactly that figured above.  
[Footnote: It is scarcely possible to render the meaning of this  
sentence with strict accuracy; mainly because the grammatical  
construction is defective in the most important part--line 4. In the  
very slight original sketch the shadow touches the upper arch of the  
window and the correction, here given is perhaps not justified.]  
1
91.  
A shadow is never seen as of uniform depth on the surface which  
intercepts it unless every portion of that surface is equidistant  
from the luminous body. This is proved by the 7th which says:--The  
shadow will appear lighter or stronger as it is surrounded by a  
darker or a lighter background. And by the 8th of this:--The  
background will be in parts darker or lighter, in proportion as it  
is farther from or nearer to the luminous body. And:--Of various  
spots equally distant from the luminous body those will always be in  
the highest light on which the rays fall at the smallest angles: The  
outline of the shadow as it falls on inequalities in the surface  
154  


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Quick Jump
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