Vitruvian Man

Timeline

1. c. 1487–1490Milan · MilanAt the Sforza court, Leonardo studied Vitruvius's De architectura and combined it with human measurement, preparing to render classical proportion theory as a testable geometric figure.
2. c. 1490Milan · MilanBy overlapping limb positions, he made a single body fit both the circle and the square, recording the corrected proportions in the caption, producing a study sheet rather than an altarpiece work.
3. 1498Gallerie dell'Accademia, Venice · VeniceThe sheet circulated with Leonardo's manuscripts and entered Venice. Together with the contemporary Last Supper, it demonstrates his method of applying scientific observation to art, becoming a visual emblem of the idea that the human body and the cosmos share the same structure.