Ornamental Designs and a List of Materials
Motifs built from links, feathers, ribbons, shells, beans and cords
Beneath the fragment 'tell me if ever,' the sheet lists materials for ornamental designs: little links, feathers, ribbons, the skin of perch, small shells and sea urchins, red beans, gilded cords, and pieces of straight-edges. In red chalk Leonardo works these into motifs, including cluster and scale patterns, fan-shaped shell forms, and interlaced knotwork. A small pen-and-ink lattice appears at the lower left.
On this page
List of materials for ornamental designs
The note gathers materials for ornamental designs: little links, feathers, ribbons, the skin of perch, small shells and sea urchins, red beans, gilded cords, and pieces of straight-edges. It reads as a repertoire of textures and elements to be combined into decorative patterns.
Scale, shell and knot motifs
In red chalk the sheet develops the listed elements into overlapping scale and cluster patterns, rows of fan-like shells, and looping interlaced knotwork. A denser pen-and-ink lattice is drawn separately at the lower left.