Château du Clos Lucé, dernière demeure de Léonard de Vinci

Amboise

At Amboise, the Clos Lucé was first of all a lordly manor. Étienne Le Loup bought it in 1471 from the nuns of the priory of Moncé and rebuilt it. On 22 November 1490 Charles VIII bought it back for 3,500 gold écus and had a chapel built there; Anne of Brittany lived there. In the autumn of 1516 Leonardo da Vinci, aged 64, crossed the Alps at the invitation of Francis I with his pupils, including Francesco Melzi, and his notebooks, as well as three large paintings including the Mona Lisa, according to the Blois-Chambord website. The king gave him the manor and the title of “first painter, engineer and architect of the king”, with a pension of 2,000 gold écus. Leonardo spent his last three years there, surrounded by his pupils, and died there on 2 May 1519. He bequeathed his manuscripts and drawings to Melzi. It is said that an underground passage links the manor to the royal château of Amboise; Techno-science presents this as a tradition (“it is said”), whereas the Blois-Chambord website asserts it. No proof of it is given in these sources. The Saint Bris family has owned it since 1832 according to Techno-science.

Getting there: Rue du Clos Lucé, in Amboise; paid admission, opening hours to be checked on the official website. Coordinates: OpenStreetMap (Nominatim).

Opening times and access details are given as a guide only: check before you set out.

Ambient sound