WHETHER THE COLOURS OF THE RAINBOW ARE PRODUCED BY THE SUN.

The colours of the rainbow are not produced by the sun, for they

occur in many ways without the sunshine; as may be seen by holding a

glass of water up to the eye; when, in the glass--where there are

those minute bubbles always seen in coarse glass--each bubble, even

though the sun does not fall on it, will produce on one side all the

colours of the rainbow; as you may see by placing the glass between

the day light and your eye in such a way as that it is close to the

eye, while on one side the glass admits the [diffused] light of the

atmosphere, and on the other side the shadow of the wall on one side

of the window; either left or right, it matters not which. Then, by

turning the glass round you will see these colours all round the

bubbles in the glass &c. And the rest shall be said in its place.

The Notebooks of Leonardo Da Vinci — Volume 1 · 第 167 / 366 题