New exhibit features 16 models of his machines
Just in time for National Inventor’s Day, the Milton J. Rubenstein Museum of Science & Technology is opening a new permanent exhibit that examines the genius of Leonardo da Vinci. The exhibit, called “da Vinci: Artist. Engineer. Scientist. Thinker,” opens at 10 a.m. Saturday, Feb. 11, 2017.
Da Vinci was the quintessential Renaissance man, simultaneously pursuing painting, sculpting, experimenting, and inventing. Famous for creating “Mona Lisa” and “The Last Supper,” he also drew detailed sketches of ingenious machines that were centuries ahead of their time.
The exhibit features 16 models of da Vinci’s machines, including his flying machine, parachute, printing press, odometer, and hydraulic screw. Some, like his flying machine, would never work. But others, such as his odometer, introduced a concept for measuring distance traveled that today’s automobile odometers still use.
The exhibit also gives a nod to da Vinci’s art with a space for visitors to draw their own masterpieces as well as his unique style of note taking. Da Vinci was left-handed and found it easier to write from right to left, so he wrote in mirror script.
National Inventors Day was established Feb. 11, 1983, by President Ronald Reagan to recognize inventors’ enormous contributions to the country and world. The date chosen is the birth anniversary of Thomas Edison, who invented the first commercially viable incandescent electric light bulb and has 1,093 patents to his name.
The new exhibit is located in the MOST’s large Horowitz Traveling Exhibit Area and is free with general admission. The museum is open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesdays through Sundays. For more information, including prices and parking, please link to our website at most.org.
