Italian philologist and historian Carlo Vecce completed his visit to KBSU

The author of the sensational book, who made the sensational discovery that the mother of the great Renaissance artist Leonardo da Vinci was a Circassian, spent time at the Kabardino-Balkarian State University named after Kh.M. Berbekov series of meetings.

The Renaissance specialist gave a lecture at the university on the great painter, sculptor, architect, anatomist, engineer, writer and thinker Leonardo da Vinci.

As Carlo Vecce admitted, he was amazed that in Leonardo’s diary entries and treatises rocky mountains, typical only of the Caucasus, often appear. And in one of the artist’s works, the archetypal image of a high mountain is directly called “Mountain of the Caucasus.”

“He never visited his mother’s historical homeland, but her unusual fate, without a doubt, left an imprint on the fate of the genius,” says the author of the book.

However, as the professor noted, the Renaissance master is famous not only for his paintings. Leonardo da Vinci is recognized as the most versatile genius of all time. He was a talented engineer. He has dozens of brilliant inventions to his credit. Leonardo da Vinci made detailed drawings of the human body that are still highly valued today. He described the influence of the Moon on the ebb and flow of tides, outlined the basic theory of plate tectonics, and laid the foundations for the modern understanding of the formation of continents. He was one of the founders of the science of hydraulics and probably developed the hydrometer. His innovative designs for canals and irrigation systems are still in use today. In botany, he proposed a description of the laws of phyllotaxy, heliotropism and geotropism, a description of the method of determining the age of plants by the structure of stems, and trees by annual rings.

Leonardo was also a kind of philosopher and mystic. According to Professor Carlo Vecce, to sharpen the perception of the world and develop the imagination, the artist created riddles and predictions: “People will talk to each other from the most distant countries and answer each other” (Internet, telephone).

Giorgio Vasari in his book “The Lives of Artists” wrote about him: “The only man amazingly endowed by heaven with beauty, grace and talent in such abundance that he had no equal in the history of mankind.”

At the end of his life, the artist handed over all his paintings to the King of France, and they are still kept in the Louvre as masterpieces of world art.

Acting Rector of KBSU Yuri Altudov thanked the professor for publishing the book “Katerina’s Smile,” which is based on reliable archival and historical facts. Later, as part of a round table, we discussed the topic: “Genoese colonies in the North Caucasus.”

As historians write, these colonies appeared in the 60s. XIII century on the northern coast of the Black Sea. They were inhabited by Circassians. According to the charter of the colonies, the Genoese paid tribute to the Adyghe princes. The main item of Circassian export was salted fish and caviar, exported in barrels. Export products also included honey, wax, leather, furs and, most importantly, bread. In turn, the following goods were imported to the Circassians through the Genoese colonies: salt, soap, fabrics, carpets, saber blades. Paradoxically, in all 209 years of Genoese-Circassian relations, not a single armed conflict occurred, the initiators of which were the princes of Zikhia (Circassia), the consuls of Caffa or the authorities of Genoa. This “peacefulness” was dictated by the enormous interest of both sides in trade. Genoese colonies existed in the Northwestern Caucasus almost until the end of the 15th century.

KBSU scientists have been researching the history of relations between the Circassians and the inhabitants of the Genoese colonies for quite a long time. Senior researcher at the sector of ancient history and archeology of the Kabardino-Balkarian Institute for Humanitarian Research, Timur Dzuganov, suggested that Carlo Vecce resume this work together with colleagues from Italy.

“The archives of this country contain a lot of historical materials about the Adyghe tribes, and it is important to make them public,”
– noted T. Dzuganov.

According to the acting rector of KBSU, Yuri Altudov, despite the difficulties, contacts with foreign colleagues are not interrupted, the parties still find common ground in a number of scientific and educational areas. He thanked the guest for a rich lecture, which was full of fresh scientific discoveries.

“The author has given permission to use the book “Katerina’s Smile” in educational and scientific activities. I am sure that KBSU students will learn from it many interesting, previously unknown facts about the great artist,”
– noted Yuri Altudov.

The meeting ended with a pleasant mission: the head of the university presented Carlo Veche with a diploma conferring the title “Honorary Professor of KBSU.” And Sultan Dabagov, a famous Adyghe scientist, deputy director for science at the Institute of Nuclear Research of the Italian Republic, was awarded the title “Honorary Doctor of KBSU.”