He tried to get the job of designing and casting the bronze doors … even going so far as to write the cathedral officials an anonymous letter extolling his talents: “There is no capable man—and you may believe me—except Leonardo the Florentine.”

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Leonardo responded with a spirited publicity campaign. In 1489 he asked a friend, the Milanese poet Piatto Piattini, for a poem celebrating the equestrian statue.

I hate self-promoting. It’s nice to know that even the greatest of all time couldn’t escape it.

From Leonardo and the Last Supper by Ross King