Da Vinci's fingerprints unravelled

Experts have pieced together Leonardo da Vinci's left index fingerprint.

The discovery could help shed light on such matters as the food the artist ate and whether his mother was of Arabic origin.
The fingerprint reconstruction followed three years' research and could help attribute disputed paintings or manuscripts, said Italian anthropologist Luigi Capasso.

"It adds the first touch of humanity," he said. "We knew how Leonardo saw the world and the future . . . but who was he? This biological information is about his being human, not being a genius."

The research was based on photographs of about 200 fingerprints - most of them partial - taken from about 52 papers handled by Leonardo in his life.

The artist often ate while working, and Capasso and other experts said his finger prints could include traces of saliva, blood or the food he ate the night before - information that could help clear up questions about his origins.

For instance, experts determined that the finger print suggests Leonardo's mother was of "oriental origin".

"It's not like every population has typical fingerprints, but they do have specific proportions among their signs," Mr Capasso said. "The one we found in this finger tip applies to 60 per cent of the Arabic population."