Unwrap Da Vincis Mysteries at Buckingham Palace

On the 500th anniversary of his death, Buckingham Palace has launched a Leonardo da Vinci-inspired escape room for visitors. The activity will be available every Friday and Saturday evening till October 12, 2019 at the Queen&rsquos Gallery. It coincides with Leonardo da Vinci A Life in Drawing&mdashan exhibition celebrating the best of the Renaissance master&rsquos work. 

Players will have to sleuth their way through four rooms of da Vinci-themed puzzles and riddles, to solve the mystery of a missing curator. The Royal Collection Trust, who developed the activity in collaboration with History Mystery, advises teams to &ldquothink like a Renaissance genius&rdquo and unearth clues from da Vinci&rsquos artworks. &ldquoYour team will need careful observation, creative thinking and detective work to beat the clock,&rdquo says the Trust, &ldquobut no prior art history knowledge is required.&rdquo

The exhibition itself brings together over 200 of da Vinci&rsquos drawings from the Royal Collection acquired during the reign of Charles II, their themes span the artist&rsquos diverse interests, including anatomy, botany, sculpture and engineering.   

The escape room has also been mindful of unintended physical and access restrictions. Carers can join in free of charge, manual wheelchairs and mobility scooters are available, and assistance dogs are welcome. Since instructions and clues are verbal, a sign language interpreter can accompany those who are deaf or hard-of-hearing.

Tickets are priced at &pound150 (approx. Rs 12,800) for teams of four to eight participants. Given the complexity of the puzzles, the activity is meant for players aged 14 or above. For more details, visit the website.