He was an irrepressible force of nature and fortunate enough to have been nurtured in a time that was daring his country further and further. Revolutions in the sciences and the humanities tend to occur in clusters of extraordinary individuals: Giotto, Michelangelo, Galileo, Dante, Machiavelli, Marco Polo, and Columbus-all were Italians, each with a key role in paving the way for the future. The lack of structured schooling makes the abundant body of Leonardo’s entirely self-taught knowledge almost unfathomable. While the couple established their residence in Florence, Leonardo remained in Vinci with his grandparents, whose stolidly middle-class household provided a stability of routine but no formal education. Leonardo’s father also entered the profession and married the daughter of another notary family.
Leonardo’s grandfather had been a notary of repute, as had his great-grandfather.
