Eternal Gardens Journal

Da Vinci Notes 09: Muscles as Cords: The Arm and the Turning of the Hand

I draw each muscle as a thread from its beginning to its end, weigh the elbow as the pole of a balance, and find the cord that turns the hand palm up.

Leonardo's arm studies of 1510 to 1511: muscles drawn as threads, the elbow as a lever, why the biceps pulls nine times the weight, and how it turns the hand.

Leonardo da Vinci · November 8, 2026 · 32 min