Let Leonardo Da Vinci show you how to write a cover letter

Even a Renaissance man is occasionally on the job hunt. Such was the case back in the 1480s, when a young Leonardo da Vinci was in Florence. Born the lowly son of a notary, da Vinci couldn't enter the "higher professions" like lawyer or statesman. Instead, his lot was that of a craftperson — a painter, to be exact.

But Florence, he realised, was crowded and if da Vinci was to make a name for himself, he would have to try another town. So he turned his sights to Milan, then ruled by Ludovico Sforza.

Da Vinci applied to work for him and wrote a cover letter that tailored his career history to his employer's needs. Here's an excerpt from the letter: