Leonardo 500th Anniversary (14) (6mm)

From paintings like the Mona Lisa and The Last Supper, to studies such as The Vitruvian Man, and designs for such devices as the viola organista, ornithopter, and ballistae, Leonardo da Vinci had — to say the very least — a long and varied career. Freewheeling from drawing to botany, painting to architecture, he touched on so many disciplines that it's hard for the lay person's mind to comprehend. Music, art and science were both his passion and his legacy, and said legacy is still considered foundational by many fields some five hundred years later. Except that it's not some five hundred years, it is exactly five hundred years, with his home country of Italy kicking off celebrations as of the 2nd of May. Long having taken inspiration from their countrymen, Savinelli are honouring the anniversary by rereleasing the shapes from their popular Leonardo da Vinci Collection. Finished in a striated rustication and adorned with a pewter rendition of Leonardo's famous self portrait, the series offers a perfect opportunity for those who missed out on the run entirely, need to fill in a couple of holes, or just want to add the new look to their complete set, all while retaining the collectability of the original run. This limited edition series spans across nine shapes (with the 14 being the 2014 edition), and each piece has been individually numbered out of the mere 500 pieces created.