Unexpected Discoveries: The Secret Passages of a Castle Revealed in Leonardo da Vinci’s 1495 Drawings

It is interesting to put this exploration in correlation with a sketch made by Léonardo da Vinci, which also presents many unknown underground passages from the castle.

The sketch of the Château des Sforza

Tinted with mysteries, the work of Leonardo da Vinci apparently did not have time to reveal all his secrets. This true genius of the 15th century had during his life, several great loves, to whom he dedicated his energy and his work: science, architecture, music, and drawing. His style was also marked by thoroughness and clarification with foolproof.

This is why scientists were so interested in its sketch representing the Château des Sforza, an emblematic monument of the city of Milan, built in the 15th century and which now houses several museums. Standing fact, today it remains only 1/6th of the original castle.

Before it is destroyed, it was Leonardo da Vinci who took care of the decoration of the castle, among others. It was the Lord of Milan himself who asked him, in 1495. At that time, the inventor had drawn “plans” of a fortification which resembles the castle of Forza. There are strange passages, which we do not know in the castle.

Underground passages drawn by Leonardo da Vinci

“” “There are still underground passages, some of which are open to public visits, but it is clear that there could be much more in these ways than what is currently known and accessible ”, said in an email at Live Science Francesca Biolo, architecture historian at the Polytechnic University of Milan.

And the least we can say is that Francesca Biolo grants credit to the sketch of Léonardo da Vinci. According to the historian, Leonardo da Vinci knew the defensive systems of his time perfectly, even if it is not possible to know how man has been involved in the construction of the monument.

When is physical exploration?

By wishing to test a new building digitization technique, Francesca Biolo and her team have managed to have the permission necessary to focus on the underground passages of the castle and to probe them thanks to several techniques such as laser scanning, GPS, lifting 3D radar with soil penetration and photogrammetry….

And the team did not come back empty -handed. “” “The results were much more significant and intriguing than what we had planned. We discovered rooms at a second underground level and an additional passage parallel to that known ”. It remains to be seen whether it will be possible one day to explore these spaces.