Read about Leonardo’s mechanical knight (robot), the drawings for which are spread across at least four folios of Codex Atlanticus and dated from 1495 and 1497. This particular design had confounded scientists and da Vinci scholars until the Niccolai Group, headed by Carlo Niccolai, successfully created a functional model for exhibition in 2009.

A patent for the Reciprocating Mechanism was granted to the Niccolai Group and the Artisans of Florence International in 2014.

Below is an excerpt from the recently published Reconstructing Leonardo da Vinci: A celebration of 500 years booklet.