BGuthrie Photos: DC -- Natl Air and Space Museum -- Temporary Exhibit: Leonardo da Vinci's Codex on the Flight of Birds

DC -- Natl Air and Space Museum -- Temporary Exhibit: Leonardo da Vinci's Codex on the Flight of Birds:

Bruce Guthrie Photos Home Page: [Click here] to go to Bruce Guthrie Photos home page.

Description of Pictures: Leonardo da Vinci's Codex on the Flight of Birds
September 13, 2013 – October 22, 2013
Leonardo da Vinci was fascinated with flight and made observations of birds to try to discover how humans could fly. His Codex on the Flight of Birds contains 18 pen and brown-ink folios that offer insight into the mind of the creative genius. The Codex was created ca. 1505-1506 and explores bird flight and behavior, followed by sketches and descriptions of mechanical devices and principles of physics not discovered until centuries later. One of the most amazing drawings in the document is a flying machine similar to a modern-day helicopter. The Codex is on view open to a single folio; 4 interactive computer stations nearby offer a view of each page with side-by-side English translation.
On loan from the Biblioteca Reale, Turin, Italy
No photography permitted

Recognize anyone? If you recognize specific folks (or other stuff) and I haven't labeled them, please identify them for the world. Click the little pencil icon

underneath the file name (just above the picture). Spammers need not apply.

Slide Show: Want to see the pictures as a slide show? [Slideshow]

Copyrights: All pictures were taken by amateur photographer Bruce Guthrie (me!) who retains copyright on them. Free for non-commercial use with attribution. See the [Creative Commons] definition of what this means. "Photos (c) Bruce Guthrie" is fine for attribution. (Commercial use folks including AI scrapers can of course contact me.) Feel free to use in publications and pages with attribution but you don't have permission to sell the photos themselves. A free copy of any printed publication using any photographs is requested. Descriptive text, if any, is from a mixture of sources, quite frequently from signs at the location or from official web sites; copyrights, if any, are retained by their original owners.

Help? The Medium (Email) links are for screen viewing and emailing. You'll want bigger sizes for printing. [Click here for additional help]

Share: Facebook Twitter Digg
[1] SIAILE_130913_01.JPG Medium (Email) (Bigger?)	[2] SIAILE_130913_05.JPG Medium (Email) (Bigger?)	[3] SIAILE_130913_10.JPG Medium (Email) (Bigger?)
[4] SIAILE_130913_14.JPG Medium (Email) (Bigger?)	[5] SIAILE_130913_17.JPG Medium (Email) (Bigger?)	[6] SIAILE_130913_37.JPG Medium (Email) (Bigger?)
[7] SIAILE_130913_48.JPG Medium (Email) (Bigger?)	[8] SIAILE_130913_51.JPG Medium (Email) (Bigger?)	[9] SIAILE_130913_64.JPG Medium (Email) (Bigger?)
[10] SIAILE_130913_65.JPG Medium (Email) (Bigger?)

Specific picture descriptions: Photos above with "i" icons next to the bracketed sequence numbers (e.g. "[1] ") are described as follows:
1. SIAILE_130913_01.JPG: Leonard Da Vinci's Codex on the Flight of Birds -- you weren't allowed to photograph the actual book
2. SIAILE_130913_10.JPG: What Did the Wrights Actually Do? The Wright brothers' inventive work resulted in three major accomplishments: (1) They designed, built, and flew a series of successful aircraft. (2) They pioneered the modern practice of aeronautical engineering. (3) They developed the tool of flight testing and data feedback into the design of an aircraft. The Aircraft: The aircraft the Wright brothers designed and built between 1900 and 1905 were truly revolutionary. They embodied solutions to all the many technical problems that had to be overcome to achieve mechanical flight. Aeronautical Engineering: Equally important, the Wright brothers developed the essential principles of modern aeronautical engineering. Particularly with their pioneering use of the wind tunnel as a primary design tool, they established the basic approach and techniques still used by all aeronautical engineers. Flight Testing: The Wright brothers' systematic flight-testing program was critical to their success. Their method of evaluating data gathered by testing an aircraft in flight, then refining the design based on these results, remains an essential tool in acceptance research and development.
3. SIAILE_130913_14.JPG: Visions of a Flying Machine: Between 1899 and 1905, the Wright brothers conducted a program of aeronautical research and experimentation that led to the first successful powered airplane in 1903 and a refined practical flying machine two years later. All successful airplanes since then have incorporated the basic design elements of the 1903 Wright Flyer. The brothers' success was rooted in their inventive method. Their specific research techniques, innate skills, and personality traits came together in a unique way and largely explain why these two people invented the airplane. The genius of Wilbur and Orville lay not only in the singular act if getting a flying machine into the air, but also in the approach they evolved and employed to create the technology of flight.
4. SIAILE_130913_17.JPG: Taking Up the Challenge: By the mid-1890s, the Wrights' bicycle business was well-established and furnished them with a respectable and enjoyable living. But it did not provide the mental rigor they craved. Both a little restless, they began to contemplate a new outlet for their inquisitiveness. They chose the airplane. In the 1890s, aviation was a new, wide-open field of study that provided rich possibilities for investigation. In the beginning, Wilbur and Orville did not set out to invent the airplane. They only hoped to challenge their creative talents and perhaps make a modest contribution to the eventual achievement of human flight. "I am an enthusiast, but not a crank in the sense that I have some pet theories as to the proper construction of a flying machine. I wish to avail myself of all that is already known and then if possible add my mite to help on the future worker who will attain final success." -- Wilbur Wright, May 30, 1899 Penaud Helicopter: The brothers' first experience with flight occurred in 1878, when their father gave them a small rubber band-powered toy helicopter designed by French aviation pioneer Alphonse Penaud. Intrigued by the little flying machine, they made several copies of it of varying sizes. After playing and experimenting with them, the brothers behaved like most young boys: they moved on to other diversions. Orville made this sketch of the toy in 1929. The Smithsonian Institution, Washington: Dear Sirs; The Wrights formally expressed their desire to join the aeronautical community in this letter Wilbur wrote to the Smithsonian Institution on May 30, 1899. After affirming his belief that human flight was possible, he declared his intent to pursue research in the field. Toward that end, he requested whatever publications on the subject the Smithsonian could provide.
5. SIAILE_130913_51.JPG: These rope lines were set up for the anticipated crowds for the Leonardo Codex.
6. SIAILE_130913_65.JPG: Leonardo Da Vince: Ornithopter Model: This full-size model of one of Leonardo's ornithopter flying machine designs is based on a drawing in da Vinci Manuscript B, folio 74, Institut de France, Paris. Leonardo likely never actually constructed any of his flying machine designs.
Multi Column: Number of columns of thumbnails to appear per page (normally defaults to 3): [1 col] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10]
AAA "Gem": AAA considers this location to be a "must see" point of interest. To see pictures of other areas that AAA considers to be Gems, click here.
Bigger photos? To save server space, the full-sized versions of these images have either not been loaded to the server or have been removed from the server. (Only some pages are loaded with full-sized images and those usually get removed after three months.) I still have them though. If you want me to email them to you, please send an email to guthrie.bruce@gmail.com and I can email them to you, or, depending on the number of images, just repost the page again will the full-sized images.
Directly Related Pages: Other pages with content (DC -- Natl Air and Space Museum -- Temporary Exhibit: (name) (in loc)) directly related to this one: [Display ALL photos on one page]:
- 2020_DC_SIAIR_Tranquility: DC -- Natl Air and Space Museum -- Temporary Exhibit: 50 Years from Tranquility Base (26 photos from 2020)
- 2019_DC_SIAIR_Armstrong: DC -- Natl Air and Space Museum -- Temporary Exhibit: Neil Armstrong's Apollo 11 Spacesuit (20 photos from 2019)
- 2018_DC_SIAIR_Spruce_Goose: DC -- Natl Air and Space Museum -- Temporary Exhibit: Hughes H-4 Spruce Goose (18 photos from 2018)
- 2018_DC_SIAIR_Barmecide: DC -- Natl Air and Space Museum --Temporary Exhibit: The Barmecide Feast (2001: A Space Odyssey room) (in Gallery 104) (105 photos from 2018)
- 2017_DC_SIAIR_Artist: DC -- Natl Air and Space Museum -- Temporary Exhibit: Artist Soldiers: Artistic Expression in the First World War (in Gallery 211) (199 photos from 2017)
- 2015_DC_SIAIR_Outside: DC -- Natl Air and Space Museum -- Temporary Exhibit: Outside the Spacecraft: 50 Years of Extra-Vehicular Activity (in Gallery 211) (35 photos from 2015)
- 2015_DC_SIAIR_Elephant: DC -- Natl Air and Space Museum -- Temporary Exhibit: Why Is This Elephant In This Room? (10 photos from 2015)
- 2015_DC_SIAIR_Airport_Tower: DC -- Natl Air and Space Museum -- Temporary Exhibit: Art of the Airport Tower (in Gallery 104) (49 photos from 2015)
- 2015_DC_SIAIR_Above: DC -- Natl Air and Space Museum -- Temporary Exhibit: Above and Beyond (in Gallery 211) (54 photos from 2015)
- 2014_DC_SIAIR_Hawaii: DC -- Natl Air and Space Museum -- Temporary Exhibit: Hawaii By Air (in Gallery 104) (64 photos from 2014)
- ...More (List all 18 pages)...
Same Subject: Click on this link to see coverage of items having the same subject: [(Smithsonian) Air and Space Museum (Everything)] [(Smithsonian) Air and Space Museum (Non-Events)] [Museums (History)]
2013 photos: Equipment this year: I mostly used my Fuji XS-1 camera but, depending on the event, I also used a Nikon D7000 and Nikon D600. Trips this year: three Civil War Trust conferences (Memphis, TN, Jackson, MS [to which I added a week to to visit sites in Mississippi, Louisiana, and Tennessee], and Richmond, VA), and my 8th consecutive San Diego Comic-Con trip (including sites in Nevada and California). Ego Strokes: Aviva Kempner used my photo of her as her author photo in Larry Ruttman's "American Jews & America's Game: Voices of a Growing Legacy in Baseball" book. Number of photos taken this year: just over 570,000.
Connection Not Secure messages? Those warnings you get from your browser about this site not having secure connections worry some people. This means this site does not have SSL installed (the link is http:, not https:). That's bad if you're entering credit card numbers, passwords, or other personal information. But this site doesn't collect any personal information so SSL is not necessary. Life's good!
Limiting Text: You can turn off all of this text by clicking this link: [Thumbnails Only]
Photo Contact: [Email Bruce Guthrie].