In a 2013 interview with 60 minutes, he spoke about the qualities he sees in leonardo that make him such a personal. Hammer commissioned leonardo da vinci scholar carlo pedretti to compile the loose pages of the codex back into its original form. 8 million , making it one of the most expensive books ever sold. · heres why the microsoft co-founder spent so much money on the book, and the wonderful lesson it teaches us. · in 1994 gates paid $ 30. · in 1994, bill gates made headlines by acquiring the codex leicester, a rare manuscript filled with leonardo da vinci ’ s scientific thoughts, for over $ 30 million. The purchase revealed gates ’s deep ad. · in 1994, he purchased leonardo da vinci s codex leicester, a manuscript that dates back to the 16th century. 8 million for it. 8 million for the journal at auction, a price that made it. · in 1994, gates made headlines by acquiring the codex leicester for $ 30. We explain in this audio series. But what is it worth today? Googles service, offered free of charge, instantly translates words, phrases, and web pages between english and over 100 other languages. Over the next seven years, pedretti translated each page to english, completing the project in 1987. · what drove the famously thrifty gates to drop so much on such a small item?