R: Muscles of the shoulder and arm. V: Muscles of the shoulder and arm, and the bones of the foot

Recto: three studies, one on a larger scale, of a man's right arm and shoulder, showing muscles; three studies of a right arm; a diagram to illustrate pronation and supination of the hand. Verso: three drawings showing a deep dissection of the muscles of the shoulder region; two studies of the muscles of the shoulder and right arm; a diagram of the respiratory muscles; a skeleton of a left foot with leg bones; notes on the drawings. The drawings at upper centre, centre and lower left (RCIN 919013v) are labelled 1st, 2nd and 3rd. The first shows the superficial muscles; in the second the deltoid is lifted away to the left, and some of pectoralis major removed to reveal more of the shoulder joint; and in the third, pectoralis major is removed to the side of the humerus. At upper left is the shoulder from the side (less successfully), and at centre right is a small ‘thread diagram’ of the same aspect. In the larger study at centre right, the details of the neck and forearm are exquisitely drawn, especially the muscles and tendons that act upon the thumb. The study at lower right demonstrates the articulation of the ankle. Leonardo’s greatest scientific researches were in the field of anatomy. He dissected around thirty corpses during his career, and made many observations far in advance of his time. Here he studied the muscles of the shoulder and arm and the bones of the foot, commenting on the structures shown in his typical mirror-writing. Leonardo intended to write a treatise on anatomy, but this was never completed, and his astonishing drawings remained little known until modern times. Text adapted from Leonardo da Vinci: A life in drawing, London, 2018