New da Vinci work discovered

The Vitruvian Man. The Mona Lisa. The Last Supper. Undoubtedly three of the most famous works of art of all time. All by the esteemed artist; Leonardo da Vinci.

However, this man was not just an artist, he was a sculptor, an inventor, a human anatomist, an engineer, the list goes on. The utter talent of this icon is undisputed, he was one of the greats and will always be remembered.

Why the sudden interest? Well, firstly, because he’s one of the most interesting men ever lived. But secondly, just sit back and imagine for a moment finding a sketch by the man himself in one of your Dad’s old books. The stuff of dreams I suppose. Except, it happened a couple of days ago in Paris.

A retired Parisian doctor was recently sorting through his papers when out fell an old sketch by the artist (image below). Quickly rushing to auction house Tarjan, the Frenchman was given the exciting news that this was in fact an authentic piece and was listed by da Vinci himself in his notebooks. It turns out it is one of eight studies da Vinci drew of the Christian martyr Saint Sebastian probably in the late 1400s. That makes this sketch roughly 600 years old! It is mind-blowing stuff.

Similarly mind-blowing is the price tag that the auction house have given this piece of farcically rare and precious art: a cool $15.8 million. It’s set to auction next June.

Next time you’re grandparents’ house (which could be soon as it’s nearly Christmas), have a sift through some of their old stuff, you never know what you might find.