[split] Taccola spillover thread

[Koen G]

Sorry, I am confused about the relation of those images.  Let C and D be the two images below your A and B, respectively

No problem, I was also confused. If I understand correctly, one of the images in Rafal's composition was mislabelled. (This happens before you realize with these similar books).

To make everything clear:

A. Munich, Bayerische Staatsbibliothek MS Lat. Monacensis 197 II. Taccola autograph of De Ingeneis I-II,
B. Florence, Biblioteca Nazionale Centrale MS Palatino 766, De Ingeneis III-IV, the book dedicated to the Emperor. This particular MS remained in Siena. As a dedication MS, it was a clean-copy of various notes and ideas Taccola worked on over the preceding years. 
C. Rafal gave this as Palatino 767, a later copy, but it looks to me like this may simply be from the Taccola autograph of De Ingeneis I-II (Munich MS, see A). Although the several copy manuscripts were often very precise, I see some damage on the page that seems identical, as well as the verso shining through.
D. Is from BNF Lat. 7239. If I understand correctly, it is based on Taccola's other work, De Machinis. To find the source of the drawbridge image, I would start by looking there.

About the similar castles ect., he's just reusing background assets.

There are many later books that include good copies of drawings by Taccola and other engineers. But these are mostly from De Ingeneis I-II and De Machinis. I am not aware of any other version of the syphon bridge drawing from De Ingeneis III-IV, the book made for the emperor. 

It is correct that the presentation copy is relatively fancy, and sketches and drafts must have existed. But we have no way to tell how early this particular one with the bridge and vertical river was made, and who may have seen/copied any of those earlier sources. Nor do we know who may have seen/copied the presentation book.