The Notebooks of Leonardo Da Vinci Complete


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A stone flung through the air leaves on the eye which sees it the  
impression of its motion, and the same effect is produced by the  
drops of water which fall from the clouds when it [16] rains.  
[17] A mountain falling on a town, will fling up dust in the form of  
clouds; but the colour of this dust will differ from that of the  
clouds. Where the rain is thickest let the colour of the dust be  
less conspicuous and where the dust is thickest let the rain be less  
conspicuous. And where the rain is mingled with the wind and with  
the dust the clouds created by the rain must be more transparent  
than those of dust [alone]. And when flames of fire are mingled with  
clouds of smoke and water very opaque and dark clouds will be formed  
[
Footnote 26-28: Compare Pl. XL, 1--the drawing in Indian ink on the  
left hand side, which seems to be a reminiscence of his observations  
of an eruption (see his remarks on Mount Etna in Vol II).]. And the  
rest of this subject will be treated in detail in the book on  
painting.  
[Footnote: See the sketches and text on Pl. XXXVIII, No. 1. Lines  
1
-16 are there given on the left hand side, 17-30 on the right. The  
four lines at the bottom on the right are given as No. 472. Above  
these texts, which are written backwards, there are in the original  
sixteen lines in a larger writing from left to right, but only half  
of this is here visible. They treat of the physical laws of motion  
of air and water. It does not seem to me that there is any reason  
for concluding that this writing from left to right is spurious.  
442  


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440 441 442 443 444

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