LEONARDO DA VINCI was known as a MATHEMATICIAN during his lifetime,
but most people today are unaware of his discoveries in GEOMETRY.
A Time-line of Leonardo da Vinci's
athematical 
ork
1452
Born in Vinci, April 15, illigitimate son of Ser Piero and peasant girl
Catarina
1453Lives with his elderly grandparents and an uncle, Francesco, who is
a farmer
1457Since he is illigitimate, he is not allowed to go to school with the
other children
1469 
Starts apprenticeship in renowned workshop of painter Andrea del Verrocchio
in Florence
Studies perspective as an art student using Geometry text by Pagolo
Medico
1472Registers as a painter in the Guild of St. Luke
1477Opens his own business
1478 
Starts first notebooks, studies basic arithmetic and duplicates tables
of squares
Draws a copy of Archimedes' screw in a plan for a tower
1480Draws a parabolic section of a cone
1482
Abandons his first commission "The Adoration of the Magi"
1483 Moves to Milan; hired by Duke of Milan, Ludivico Sforza, as military
engineer
Studies algebra with Marliano, meets the father of mathematician Cardano
1483
Begins project to build 80 ton statue of Sforza's father on horseback
1489Begins anatomical studies
1490 Begins notebooks to record his studies with many detailed drawings
1490Works on problems on transformation of volumes
1493Leonardo is recognized as a Geometer
1496Becomes friends with mathematician Luca Pacioli; illustrates his book
Divina Proportione
Studies Euclid; begins a period of intense mathematical study from
1496-1504
1496 
Begins the quadrature problems (squaring the circle); uses
key geometrical figure
1499 Italy is invaded by France, Sforza falls from power, Leonardo finds
patrons in Mantua & Venice
1500Works on problems with kinemetric figures (Newton builds on this with
flux concept)
Studies Giorgio Valla's encyclopedia; begins problems on doubling the
cube
1502Hired by Cesare Borgia; travels with his army for one year as a military
engineer
1502Works on pyramid problems; discovers its center of mass; begins fixed
compass problems
1503Back in Florence, he begins painting the Mona Lisa
1503Writes that he has successfully squared the circle
1504Death of Leonardo's father
1507Death of his uncle, Francesco in Vinci
1507 Leonardo's interest shifts back to quadrature problems during
next 3 years
1508 Moves back to Milan
1509Re-discovers the Lunes of Alhazen
1510
Employed by French King Louis XII; given a stipend for next 2 years
1512Paints his self-portrait as an old man
1513Opens a studio in Rome; accepts projects from the Pope; Pope forbids
dissections
1515Determines the surface area of a cone by rolling one on a plastic surface
1515Prepares hundreds of quadrature problems for a game book
called De Ludo Geometrico
1516 His patron Giuliano de' Medici dies, leaves Italy
1516Hired by King Francis I of France and given stipend; moves to Amboise,
France
1516Suffering paralysis in right hand; gives up using compass and ruler
in geometry problems
1519Dies on May 2 in Cloux, France near Amboise