The Twelve Paris Sketchbooks of Leonardo Da Vinci

The Twelve Paris Sketchbooks of Leonardo da Vinci

The personal collection of ideas from the great universal genius

On the occasion of the 500th anniversary of Leonardo da Vinci’s death, Faksimile Verlag – in collaboration with Eikon Editores and the Institut de France – presents a once-in-a-lifetime edition of the 12 Paris Notebooks and their two supplement volumes (Codices Ashburnham I & II).

These notebooks, written between 1485 and 1516, contain Leonardo’s personal observations, ideas, and sketches – covering an astonishing range of subjects from art, architecture, and anatomy to mechanics, water, and the flight of birds. More than 7,200 pages from 25 codices have survived; this edition brings together 12 of them (plus the supplements), comprising 1,207 folios, faithfully reproduced in four elegant cases.

Leonardo’s writings reveal the spirit of the Renaissance: the interplay of macrocosm and microcosm, the fascination with movement, and the search for the principles of nature. His habit of writing in mirror script – partly to avoid smudging ink as a left-hander, partly to safeguard his ideas – adds another layer of intrigue to these pages.

The supplements, known as the Codices Ashburnham, have a dramatic history: Count Guglielmo Libri removed pages from manuscripts A and B in the 1840s and sold them to the British collector Bertram Ashburnham. Only in 1890 were they recovered by the Institut de France. Today, they form an integral part of this monumental facsimile edition.

Each notebook comes with an authentic leather binding, perfectly mirroring the originals. The edition is accompanied by scholarly commentary volumes in German and English, providing in-depth analysis of Leonardo’s thought and the manuscripts’ history.

The Four Series of the Facsimile Edition

This grand publishing project is divided into four series – three of which have already been released – guiding collectors step by step into the world of Leonardo:

Already published:

• First Series – Manuscript A, Supplement A (Codex Ashburnham I), Manuscript E, Manuscript M
• Second Series – Manuscript B, Supplement B (Codex Ashburnham II), Manuscript G, Manuscript L
• Third Series – Manuscript C, Manuscript F, Manuscript I

Forthcoming, end of 2026:

• Fourth Series – Manuscript D, Manuscript H, Manuscript K

Each series offers a fresh perspective on Leonardo’s oeuvre – from his early notes of the 1480s to the mature reflections of the 1510s.

“The 12 Notebooks of Leonardo da Vinci – a window into the mind of a genius centuries ahead of his time.”