Fourteen descendants of Leonardo da Vinci indetified in Tuscany. 

New research, conducted in Italy by two Leonardo da Vinci experts, has identified fourteen descendants  of the Tuscan genius.

The results were published in “Human Evolution” magazine, and complete previous studies on the heirs of Leonardo da Vinci.  A total of twenty one generations have been identified, starting from the family founder Michele da Vinci in 1331.  Most of the descendants were located near the home town of Leonardo, Vinci, in Tuscany. 

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Alessandro Vezzosi (founder and director of the Ideal Leonardo Da Vinci Museum in Vinci) and Agnese Sabato (President of the Leonardo Da Vinci Heritage Association) conducted the study and demonstrated, or better, confirmed, that Leonardo had at least twenty two step brothers but no children. 

The discovery aims to identify Leonardo da Vinci’s DNA and allow researches to study some of the biological aspects of the life of the Mona Lisa painter.  Elements such as health, aging process, left handedness and the extraordinary sight capacity of Leonardo could now be explained scientifically. 

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The study, conducted with the help of living descendants, will integrate the research of the international group “The Leonardo da Vinci DNA Project” directed by Jesse Ausubel (The Rockefeller University, New York) and backed by the Richard Lounsbery foundation. The Loyola Institute in California and other prestigious centers, such as the Biology Department of the University of Florence, are part of the research as well.