This is a guest episode by Dirk Hoffmann of the history of the German podcast, in which he tells us all about the impact of one of the most important inventions in human history, Gutenberg printing press.

Just to let you know I haven’t disappeared!

We explore the fascinating intersection between one of the world’s most famous relics and one of its most brilliant minds: Leonardo Da Vinci and the Shroud of Turin. Was Da Vinci somehow connected to this mysterious cloth? Could he have had the knowledge, access, and motive?

🕯️ What You’ll Hear:

• The scientific investigation into the Shroud of Turin by the STURP team in 1978 and why their results only deepened the mystery.
• The carbon dating shock: how the Shroud was traced back not to 1st century Jerusalem, but medieval Europe.
• The curious photographic qualities of the Shroud and the theories involving camera obscura and silver sulphate.
• The intriguing possibility that Leonardo Da Vinci had the knowledge and opportunity to create such a sophisticated hoax.
• A dive into Leonardo’s Milan years: his commissions, his pupils (including the infamous Salaì), and unfinished masterpieces.
• The story behind The Last Supper, Vitruvian Man, and Leonardo’s move to the French court under Francis I.
• Reflections on Leonardo’s final years and his legacy as a polymath, artist, engineer, and relentless thinker.

📍Locations & Highlights:

• Milan – Leonardo’s court years and commissions under Ludovico Sforza.
• Kraków – Home to the portrait of Cecilia Gallerani, Lady with an Ermine.
• Rome, Florence, Amboise – Key stages of Leonardo’s later life.

🔍 Big Questions:

• Could Da Vinci have created the Shroud?
• What does the Vitruvian Man really represent?
• Was Salaì the inspiration behind some of Leonardo’s most enigmatic figures?