Vinci

Leonardo was born in April 1452 near this village, the illegitimate son of a notary, and the surname is simply where he came from. The Museo Leonardiano occupies the castle and a second building and shows models built from his drawings of machines, gears, flying devices and hydraulic works, with the notebooks reproduced beside them. About three kilometres up the hill at Anchiano stands a stone farmhouse traditionally identified as his birthplace; the identification rests on later documents and is probable rather than certain. A walking path links village and house through olive terraces.

What you actually see

• The machine models - constructions built from Leonardo's drawings.
• The castle museum - the collection housed in the village fortress.
• The Anchiano house - the farmhouse traditionally called his birthplace.
• The olive path - a walking route between the two through terraces.

When to go

April to October; the anniversary in mid-April brings events. Summer weekends are crowded in a small village. The hill path is best in cool weather.

Honest expectations

The birthplace attribution is traditional and not documented with certainty. The museum shows reconstructions, not original works. The village is very small.

Nearby

Empoli lies south; Florence is east.