In this painting of Leonardos there was a smile so pleasing that it seemed divine rather than human.

Often called "the first art historian", Vasari writes with delight on the lives of Leonardo and other celebrated Renaissance artists .

Introducing Little Black Classics: 80 books for Penguins 80th birthday. Little Black Classics celebrate the huge range and diversity of Penguin Classics, with books from around the world and across many centuries. They take us from a balloon ride over Victorian London to a garden of blossom in Japan, from Tierra del Fuego to 16th-century California and the Russian steppe. Here are stories lyrical and savage