Isolation and amplification of ancient DNA from art obtained by the double-swab technique. a) Detailed description and pictures of the artwork or correspondence from Leonardo da Vinci, Frosino di Ser Giovanni da Vinci, Filippino Lippi, Andrea Sacchi and Charles J. Flipart. b) Illustration of platform used for sample acquisition, DNA isolation, next generation sequencing and bioinformatics. Quantification of DNA isolated ng/uL from each cultural artifact of male controls with regards to the method of collection used.
A pre-print of the paper, “Biological signatures of history: Biome and Y chromosome analysis of cultural artifacts associated with Leonardo da Vinci and other master artists,” published by bioRxiv as part of the Leonardo DNA Project, is available at https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.01.06.697880v1
Contact: Terry Collins, +1-416-878-8712; terrycollins1@gmail.com
Leonardo’s Art Still Carries a Biological Record of Its History, Study Shows
Surface DNA from artworks reveals biological patterns; Findings offer clues, not conclusions: Research continues on definitive genetic identification of Leonardo; Artworks emerge as biological archives, preserving traces of their human and environmental history
Renaissance artworks and historical documents associated with Leonardo da Vinci continue to preserve measurable biological traces shaped by centuries of human contact and environmental exposure, according to an international study published today.
Leonardo DNA Project researchers used minimally invasive techniques to sample drawings, sketches, and archival correspondence linked to Leonardo, as well as several other European masters. They found that genetic material recovered from surfaces of these cultural objects forms distinct signatures that reflect their long journeys through time.
Broadly, the work represents a landmark shift in heritage science. Biological material once dismissed as contamination is increasingly viewed as evidence. Microbial and environmental DNA recovered from artworks has already offered insights into where objects traveled and the conditions they endured.
Cultural artifacts can serve as biological archives
Initiated in 2015, the Leonardo DNA Project has helped establish arteomics, an emerging discipline focused on using genetic and microbial evidence to interpret and conserve artworks. Project scientists have developed protocols that allow DNA to be recovered from fragile papers and delicate drawings with minimal invasiveness.
Using light surface swabbing and low-input whole-metagenome sequencing, the team analyzed traces from several Leonardo-associated objects. These included a red chalk drawing known as The Holy Child, as well as letters written more than 500 years ago by a da Vinci relative, a key artifact uncovered by Italian journalist / project researcher Rossella Lorenzi. The same approach was applied to less valuable artworks of the same era to provide meaningful comparisons.
Across all artifacts, the research led by Norberto Gonzalez-Juarbe of the J. Craig Venter Institute and University of Maryland identified distinct biomes made up of bacteria, fungi, plants, animals, viruses, and parasites. These biological profiles differed systematically from object to object. Materials, geography, storage conditions, and conservation histories all appeared to influence what remained on each surface.
Statistical comparisons showed that every artifact carried a reproducible and distinguishable signature. In effect, objects once assumed to be biologically silent were found to function as living fingerprints of their environments.
Beyond environmental and microbial signals, the study also investigated the extraction of meaningful human genetic information from surface-derived DNA.
Using short-read sequencing data and forensic genetic profiling, the researchers consistently detected related Y-chromosomal lineages across multiple Leonardo-associated objects and family documents.
The scholars are careful to emphasize that these results are promising but not definitive, especially when it comes to isolating the DNA of a single historical individual.
Instead, the repeated detection of paternal signals suggests a shared lineage pattern that merits further investigation. Additional artifacts will be needed to strengthen or refine these observations.
Looking ahead, notebooks remain among the top future sampling priorities related to Leonardo. Tombs and burial sites may also be considered if access becomes available.
The project’s impact extends beyond attribution. Researchers hope to determine whether Leonardo’s biology might help explain his extraordinary visual perception. His precise depictions of transient phenomena, such as turbulent water flows and dragonfly wingbeats, have led engineers and geneticists to wonder whether he perceived motion at unusually high temporal resolution.
Genes linked to retinal signal speed are among those under consideration. Even so, scholars stress that genius cannot be reduced to genetics alone. Biology may add clues about the man, but it will never replace the creative achievements that made his name immortal.
Implications for art, science, and history
The study demonstrates that combining metagenomic sequencing with targeted molecular analyses can extract biological and genealogical information from cultural objects. What began as a conservation experiment has grown into a new method for exploring the material history of humanity’s heritage.
Says Jesse Ausubel of The Rockefeller University, chair of the Leonardo DNA Project: “Even if confirmed DNA matches with Leonardo are still ahead, success is now inevitable in the sense that a threshold has been crossed. The project has established a solid ‘scaffold,’ a reference framework for detecting ‘signatures’ on ancient artworks or documents using DNA or microbiomes. The knowledge and landmark techniques pioneered by the project can and surely will be applied to gain insights into other major historical figures.”
Curators may use this framework to better understand deterioration processes and environmental risks. Provenance research gains a complementary layer, and conservation science acquires tools that were unimaginable only a decade ago.
Dr. Gonzalez-Juarbe adds that biology has long been treated as dirt to be cleaned away. “This project helps illustrate just how much we can learn from DNA and microbiomes that may have been preserved on artworks over centuries.”
The bioRxiv paper was produced by an international team from the J. Craig Venter Institute, The University of Maryland, Vanderbilt University and Vanderbilt University Medical Center, The Jackson Laboratory, The National Institute of Standards and Technology, The University of Basel, The University of Granada, and collaborating forensic laboratories in the United States and Europe.
Financial support was provided by the Achelis & Bodman Foundation, Richard Lounsbery Foundation, and Puffin Fund.
At a glance
The new study compared multiple independent swabs from Leonardo-linked artifacts, letters written by a documented distant relative, modern control samples, and artworks by other masters.
Artworks as biological archives: Cultural artifacts retain complex biological traces from centuries of human contact, environment, and material use.
Non-destructive science: Researchers used gentle swabbing and low-input sequencing that allowed biological analysis without damaging artworks.
Distinct biological signatures: Each artifact carried a unique biome of microbes, plants, animals, viruses, and parasites shaped by its history.
Consistent lineage signal: Multiple independent samples supported Y-chromosome haplogroups within E1b1/E1b1b, though not definitive identification.
Broader impact: The approach provides a scalable framework for conservation science, provenance research, and hypothesis-driven studies of cultural heritage.
Findings offer clues, not conclusions: The project continues cautiously toward a definitive genetic identification of Leonardo da Vinci.
Authors
- Harinder Singh
- Seesandra V. Rajagopala
- Rebecca Hart
- Pille Hallast
- Mark Loftus
- Rosana Wiscovitch-Russo
- Cody R. K. Conrad
- David S. Thaler
- Guadalupe Piñar
- Karina C. Åberg
- Rossella Lorenzi
- José A. Lorente
- Jesse H. Ausubel
- Thomas P. Sakmar
- Rhonda K. Roby
- Charles Lee
- Norberto Gonzalez-Juarbe