How tall was Leonardo da Vinci? In this article, we explore the many facets of Leonardo da Vinci’s height, giving the story of this famous polymath a dash of mystery. Famous for his paintings like “The Mona Lisa” and “The Last Supper,” Leonardo da Vinci was also a skilled architect, engineer, and inventor. But despite his greatness, historical sources on his private life are typically sketchy. This includes Leonardo da Vinci’s height, which is believed to be 5 feet 8 inches (173 cm) based on skeletal remains.
Why Leonardo da Vinci’s Height Was Never Recorded
Leonardo’s legacy in the fields of art, science, and engineering can be tracked with reasonable ease (see Leonardo da Vinci’s Self-Propelled Cart and Da Vinci Tank), but information about his physical attributes is more elusive.
The Renaissance was not a time when personal records were kept as meticulously as they are now. It was not always a top concern to keep detailed records of births and deaths or even take precise measurements of people’s heights.
Some of Shakespeare’s siblings were recorded with inaccurate names, and Charlemagne’s height or Pepin the Short’s height were never documented officially.
According to several sources, Leonardo was either of ordinary height for his day or somewhat taller. However, Leonardo kept his own life pretty private. Though his diaries reveal much about his ideas and feelings, they seldom discuss more intimate topics like his appearance or height.
Leonardo da Vinci’s Height Based on Secondary Sources
There is no way to know for sure how tall Leonardo da Vinci was. Our best estimates of Leonardo da Vinci’s height come from secondary sources.
Average Height at the Time
Some sources say Leonardo’s height was typical for his period, while others imply that he was unusually tall.
According to one study, men in Leonardo da Vinci’s day in the 15th and 16th centuries typically stood around 5 feet 7 inches (170 cm) in height on average. This is based on skeletal remains from the time period as well as research on art, namely paintings and sculptures.
References to Leonardo da Vinci’s Height
There are a few references to Leonardo da Vinci’s height. However, none of them are contemporary. One of them is from Mrs. Charles W. Heaton’s Leonardo Da Vinci and His Works (1874), and it claims that Leonardo da Vinci was 5 feet 8 inches (173 cm) tall. However, it doesn’t explain why this figure accords with the height of the great genius.
Leonardo’s Height Based on Skeletal Remains
On August 12, 1519, Leonardo da Vinci was laid to rest at the age of 67 at the chapel of St. Florentin in Amboise, France. When the researchers uncovered a “supposed” tomb of Leonardo on August 20th, 1863, at the demolition of the Church of St. Florentine, they found the remains of a man resting his head on his hands.
Since this burial position had never been seen before, the researchers interpreted that it might have been intended to resemble a “deep thinker” in eternal sleep, tired of his life-long studies.
The researchers took the skull from the tomb, and when the many doctors compared it with the portrait of Leonardo da Vinci from Milan, they agreed that it belonged to a septuagenarian (a person between the ages of 70 and 79) and corresponded greatly with the Renaissance man’s portrait.
“The skeleton, which measured five feet eight inches, accords with the height of Leonardo da Vinci. […] M. Robert Fleury, head master of the Fine Art School at Rome, has handled the skull with respect, and recognized in it the grand and simple outline of this human yet divine head, which once held a world within its limits.”
Leonardo da Vinci and His Works, page 204. Heaton, Charles W., Mrs., 1874 – Internet Archive.
Freud’s Essay on Leonardo da Vinci’s Height
Sigmund Freud’s conclusive essay on Leonardo states his stature:
“He was tall and well-proportioned; his features were of consummate beauty and his physical strength unusual.”
References to Leonardo’s Physicality
Several observers have remarked on Leonardo’s physical attractiveness throughout history. When all pieces are put together, the “well-proportioned” and “handsome looking” aspects of Leonardo may very well point to his at least average or higher than average height:
- Gasparo Visconti, a poet who knew Leonardo, wrote the first known reference to his physical appearance in a poem in 1498. His poem is a satire, and although he exaggerates certain details for laughs, he does make it clear that the great painter he praises was proud of his handsome appearance. Although there are no specific details on Leonardo’s height, it is safe to assume that you need to be at least average in height to be praised for your handsome look in a poem.
- Jean Lemaire, the French poet, wrote a poem describing Leonardo’s “supernatural grace” soon after, in 1509. However, it is unclear what kind of physical features were meant by this.
- Paolo Giovio, an Italian physician of the 16th century who met Leonardo, stated that “His face was extraordinarily beautiful.”
- Giorgio Vasari, an Italian painter who was 8 years old at the time the famous painter died, claimed that “He was striking and handsome.”
- Gaddiano Anonimo, an anonymous author of the same period who may have also met the painter, claimed that Leonardo was “attractive, well-proportioned, graceful, and good-looking. His hair came to the middle of his chest and was well-dressed and curled.”
A contemporaneous biography of Leonardo published by Giorgio Vasari in the 16th century is one of the first sources of knowledge about his physicality. Although the text does not specifically talk about Leonardo’s height, Vasari says that:
“In him was great bodily strength, joined to dexterity, with a spirit and courage ever royal and magnanimous.”
The Life Of Leonardo Da Vinci by Giorgio Vasari, Gutenberg.org
Vasari never met Leonardo in person. However, Vasari seems to have seen the Melzi painting because he had contact with several of Leonardo’s acquaintances and staff 30 years after Leonardo’s death. If you believe Vasari, Leonardo was “so strong that he could… bend a horseshoe and the iron ring of a doorbell.” It is known that Leonardo enjoyed good health and was constantly on the move.
Based on His Artwork
Art historians have also examined Leonardo’s own works to look for clues about his size and weight. They’ve found that the majority of the individuals in his artwork are of ordinary height and body type.
Based on his depictions of other individuals in his artwork, experts have concluded that if Leonardo da Vinci was average in height, he indeed stood somewhere between 5 feet 4 inches (163 cm) and 5 feet 8 inches (173 cm).
His famous works, like “Vitruvian Man,” reveal Leonardo’s ideal human. But according to some historians, the Vitruvian Man may also be a reflection of Leonardo’s own height—a kind of self-portrait.
From the looks of things, da Vinci idealized a well-proportioned man like Vitruvian Man should be around seven heads tall, or around 5 feet 10 inches (178 cm).
However, artists often distort the dimensions of their figures for dramatic effect. So, this is not a very reliable theory for Leonardo da Vinci’s possible height.
Conclusion
Numerous urban legends have developed throughout the years about how tall Leonardo da Vinci really was. One common misconception is that Leonardo da Vinci was much taller than the average person of his day. This claim suggests that he was more than 6 feet 3 inches (190 cm) tall. However, this assertion is unsupported by evidence and rests instead on an idealized conception of the great painter rather than actual history.
Leonardo da Vinci was not shown as being particularly tall in any artistic depictions of him. His renowned self-portrait, titled simply “Portrait of Leonardo da Vinci,” shows him to have normal dimensions, in keeping with the standards of the time. Da Vinci’s portrayals in the works of his contemporaries are consistent with these height standards.
There are no descriptions or allusions to Leonardo da Vinci’s remarkable height in the existing historical sources and biographical writings. If he had been noticeably taller than the average person at the time, such as Abraham Lincoln’s height, it’s likely that fact would have been recorded.
Therefore, Leonardo Da Vinci’s height was likely in line with the average height of men at the time. His height was probably somewhere between 5 feet 7 inches (1.7 m) and 5 feet 8 inches (1.75 m), considering the average height of men at the time.
And the one and only potential evidence regarding Leonardo’s height—his potential skeletal remains—shows that he might have stood around 5 feet 7 inches (1.73 m).
Human Height Throughout History
Anthropologists have observed significant fluctuations in human average height throughout the millenniums. The first Stone Age humans were the Neanderthals, who were only around 5 feet 3 inches (160 cm) tall.
Cro-Magnons, the ancestors of modern humans, on the other hand, averaged around 6 feet (183 cm) in height.
The concept of knights being tremendous giants, as shown in museums, is not even accurate since there was a dramatic fall in human height throughout the Middle Ages. Similar to Leonardo da Vinci’s height, they were about 5 feet 3 inches (160 cm) tall on average, sometimes much shorter.
References
- Life Of Leonardo Da Vinci by Giorgio Vasari, 1550 – Gutenberg.org
- Leonardo da Vinci and his works by Heaton, Charles W., Mrs, 1874 – Internet Archive
