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_6 Musical machines
_2xx Macchine da guerra
601 ~ Mechanical drum ~ Codex Atlanticus, f. 837r (1503-1505)
 

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  The drawing is a cart equipped with a mechanical drum. When pulled or set in motion by a handle, the gears turn the two lateral drums which are fitted with pegs (cams). These pegs, which can be placed in various positions, move ten sticks (five on each side) that beat the large drum on the back. Changing the position of the pegs alters the rhythm of the music.

602 ~ Skull-shaped Lyre ~ Codex Asburnham I
 

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  A design for a lyre that was most probably meant for use on stage rather than an instrument to be actually played. The idea of using animal parts as sound boxes in musical instruments has prehistoric origins.

603 ~ Harpsichord-Viola ~ Codex Atlanticus, f. 93r (1478-1482)
 

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  This comprehensive folio depicts the apparatus for a portable musical instrument. In the center of the bottom of the page, we see a view showing the case. The instrument is worn around the waist and played with both hands on a keyboard, in the same way as a piano. Inside, a complex system of cams and pulleys that raise and lower the strings to and from a moving horsehair bow, producing a sound similar to that of a viola. The internal bow moves continuously, thanks to a system of pulleys and a flywheel, which the player operates with his legs. This piano viola has only recently been discovered.

604 ~ Trumpet with pair of bellows~ Codex Madrid II , f. 76r
 

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  The secret of this instrument is the pair of bellows. The movement of the musician's elbow works the bellows, which then produce a continuous sound.
 
_Leonardo's machines
_2xx Macchine da guerra
- Page of simple machines
- Page of meccanismi composti

- Page of flying machines and studies on flight
- Page of war machines
- Page of machines for use with and on water
- Page of industrial and building machines
- Page of theatrical machines
- Page of musical machines
- Page of miscellaneous machines
- Page of geometrical studies
- Page of machines designed by other Renaissance engineers
 
   
 
 

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