The Measure of a Man
Page 23
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Which leads me, in concluding this note, to caution the reader against using this as a history book. It is a novel, and even though many historical events depicted in it are verified, the same cannot be said of the relationship between these events. It is true that Leonardo never completed the equestrian monument to Francesco Sforza, just as it is true that Leonardo recognized the inconsistencies of scale in the proportions of animals; that the two things are connected is, I fear, pure imagination. But I also believe that, in writing a book with the genius of Da Vinci as protagonist, not using my imagination would have been not just mistaken but disrespectful toward him.
Italy in 1493.
The Castello Sforzesco at the time of Leonardo.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Marco Malvaldi was born and lives in Pisa. His previous books include the Bar Lume series, featuring Massimo the Barman and four elderly sleuths. He is the winner of both the Isola d’Elba Award and the Castiglioncello Prize for his crime novels.