In 1994, Bill Gates purchased one of the most remarkable scientific manuscripts ever written: the Codex Leicester by Leonardo da Vinci.
Gates bought the manuscript at a Christie’s auction in New York for $30.8 million, setting a record at the time for the most expensive manuscript ever sold.
The Codex Leicester is a collection of da Vinci’s handwritten scientific notes from the early 1500s. It contains 72 pages filled with sketches, diagrams, and observations on topics such as water flow, astronomy, geology, fossils, and the nature of light. Many of the notes are written in Leonardo’s famous mirror writing, meaning the text must be read from right to left with a mirror.
Despite its immense value, Gates did not keep the manuscript hidden in a private collection. After purchasing it, he had the pages digitally scanned and even distributed some images as screensavers and wallpapers in Microsoft Plus! for Windows 95, allowing millions of computer users to see Leonardo’s work.
The manuscript is also regularly loaned to museums around the world, where it is displayed to the public. More than 500 years after it was written, the Codex Leicester remains one of the most extraordinary windows into the mind of Leonardo da Vinci.