Nobilis unveil a co-production between Nobilis, Elektrogames, TOTM Studio, Kheops Studio, Mzone Studio, in collaboration with the Chateau du Clos Lucé, The Secrets of Da Vinci: The Forbidden Manuscript is due for release on PC in April, 2006.

Valdo, an ambitious young apprentice working for Da Vinci's disciple Francesco Melzi is extremely disappointed when the scholar suddenly dismisses him. However, shortly afterwards, he receives a letter from a mysterious patron, asking him to locate one of the great master's missing codices. To access Da Vinci's last residence, the Manoir du Cloux near Ambroise, Valdo tells its new occupant, a courtesan by the name of Babou de la Bourdaisière, that he is Francesco Melzi's apprentice, and that he wishes to examine the inventions that still remain on the estate.
Under this cover, he starts to scour the estate: Babou's bedroom, Leonardo's workshop, the grounds, and dovecot, leaving no stone unturned. In the course of his investigations, he encounters a wide array of intriguing characters: Babou herself, Saturnin, a suspicious looking guardian, and the King of France himself. To accomplish his mission, he has to solve a series of enigmas devised by the great master himself if Da Vinci's inventions are to function again. On the trail of the genius, Valdo is no longer aware of the secrets he is about to unveil nor of the danger lurking in the dark.

Leonardo da Vinci(born April 15, 1452 in Vinci, Italy, and died on May 2, 1519 in Cloux, France) was an Italian Renaissance architect, musician, anatomist, inventor, engineer, sculptor, geometer, and painter. He has been described as the archetype of the "Renaissance man" and as a universal genius, a man both infinitely curious and infinitely inventive. He is also considered to be one of the greatest painters that ever lived.

In his lifetime, Da Vinci was an engineer, artist, anatomist, physiologist and much more. Leonardo is famous for his paintings, such as Mona Lisa, The Last Supper, and the drawing Vitruvian Man. He designed many inventions that anticipated modern technology like the helicopter, tank, use of solar power, calculator etc., although few of these designs were constructed or feasible in his lifetime. In addition, he advanced the study of anatomy, astronomy, and civil engineering. Of his works, only a few paintings survive, together with his notebooks (scattered among various collections) containing drawings, scientific diagrams and notes.

Leonardo was apprenticed to the artist Verrocchio in Florence when he was about 15. In 1476 Leonardo worked with Verrocchio to paint The Baptism of Christ for the friars of Vallombrosa. He painted the angel at the front and the landscape, and the difference between the two artists' work can be seen, with Leonardo's finer blending and brushwork. Giorgio Vasari told the story that when Verrochio saw Leonardo's work he was so amazed that he resolved never to touch a brush again.

Between 1499 and 1516 (the Nomadic Period), Leonardo worked for a number of people, travelling around Italy doing several commissions, before moving to France in 1516 accepting the invitation of François I, King of France, to move to the Manoir du Cloux, near Ambroise, now known as Chteau du Clos Lucé. He was named "chief artist, engineer, and architect to the King". In His Majesty's own words: "You will be free here to dream, think and work."

He began work on the Mona Lisa (also known as La Gioconda, now at the Louvre in Paris) in 1503, which he did not finish until 1506. He most likely kept it with him at all times, and did not travel without it. In the same year, Leonardo met Count Francesco Melzi, the 15 year old son of a Lombard aristocrat. Melzi himself, in a letter, described Leonardo's feelings towards him as a sviscerato et ardentissimo amore ("a passionate and most fiery love").

Leonardo da Vinci died in 1519 and bequeathed all his technical notes to his pupil and faithful companion, so that they might be published and made useful to as many people as possible. However, his pupil failed to do this and these notebooks - originally loose papers of different types and sizes, were ditributed among his friends and have found their way into major collections such as the Louvre, the Biblioteca Nacional de España, the Biblioteca Ambrosiana in Milan, and the British Library..

Leonardo's notebooks were on four main themes; architecture, elements of mechanics, painting, and human anatomy. They remained obscure until the 19th century, and were not directly of value to the development of science and technology. Why Leonardo did not publish or otherwise distribute the contents of his notebooks remains a mystery to those who believe that Leonardo wanted to make his observations public knowledge.

The Codex Leicester is the only major scientific work of Leonardo's in private hands. It is owned by Bill Gates, and is displayed once a year in different cities around the world.

RELATED LINKS

Codex Leicester
Leonardo Da Vinci Selected Gallery
Biography

Selected Galleries displaying Da Vinci's Works

Uffizi, Florence, Italy
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., United States
Hermitage Museum, Saint Petersburg, Russia
Alte Pinakothek, Munich, Germany
Louvre, Paris, France
Czartoryski Museum, Krakow, PolandPinacoteca Ambrosiana, Milan, Italy
National Gallery, London, UK
Galleria Borghese, Rome, Italy
Convent of Sta. Maria delle Grazie, Milan, Italy