R: The bones and muscles of the shoulder. V: The superficial anatomy of the shoulder and neck

Recto: three small studies of the left ankle and foot, including one of the bones showing movements of the ankle; a dissection and schematic drawing of the shoulder seen from behind and two dissections from above; all show the attachment of the muscles. Verso: two studies of the head, neck and thorax of a man, facing to the right, with the right arm outstretched; the neck, thorax and right arm of a man, facing right; three-quarters front view of the head, neck, thorax and arm of a man; two studies of a right shoulder from the front, and another of the same subject above them. The studies in RCIN 919001v run as a sequence from upper right, turning the body in space to end with a frontal dissected view, which shows the chest muscle (pectoralis major) divided into four to emphasise its distinct portions and range of attachment. The sensitivity of surface modelling suggests that the drawings were made from the life, and the convincing manner in which Leonardo shows the skin stripped from tensed muscles in the last drawing emphasises his powers of visualisation. After his first studies of anatomy in the 1480s, Leonardo returned to the subject late in life. He intended to publish an illustrated treatise on human anatomy, but this was never completed, and his work thus had no discernible impact on the discipline. In the winter of 1510-11, Leonardo may have dissected up to 20 human bodies in the medical school of the University of Pavia, focussing on the mechanisms of the bones and muscles. Text adapted from Leonardo da Vinci, A life in drawing, London, 2018