Colored inlays for imitation stone, and a paste-press
Hair dressed in colored rinds like a peacock's eye; a lever press shapes paste; glue melted in a bath
The page belongs to Leonardo's recipe for imitation colored stone. One note describes cutting a woman's long hair, dressed in rinds of various colors, into pieces a quarter of a finger thick so their cut faces resemble a peacock's eye, to be set into the congealing-mold between a fixed and a transparent material. A second note explains a paste-press whose lever (d moved from c to e) forces colored paste through a two-angled spout into the shape m n, worked back and forth many times with fresh colored paste added beneath. A third line advises that the glue must always be melted in a water bath. A small press and a vessel are sketched in the right margin.
On this page
Colored hair-rinds cut to imitate a peacock's-eye stone
The long hair of a woman, clothed in rinds of various colors and cut into little pieces a quarter of a finger thick, will show cut faces like a peacock's eye. These pieces are meant to be set into the congealing-mold, between the fixed and the transparent material.
Lever press extruding colored paste (d, c, e, m, n)
Moving the lever d from c to e presses paste through a two-angled spout, giving it the profile m n. The lever is worked from right to left and left to right many times, with fresh paste of various colors added beneath.
Glue melted in a water bath
A short rule states that the glue must always be melted in a water bath. The instruction accompanies a small vessel set on a basin, sketched in the lower margin.