Leonardo da Vinci: A Renaissance Polymath Leonardo da Vinci, born April 15, 1452, in Anchiano, near Vinci, Italy, remains one of the most iconic and endlessly fascinating figures in Western art history. More than simply a painter, he was a true polymath – an artist, scientist, inventor, anatomist, architect, engineer, geologist, cartographer, botanist, and musician. His life spanned nearly six decades, during which he relentlessly pur…