LEONARDO da Vinci has long been recognised as an all-round genius – the embodiment of Renaissance Man.

Not only was he a dab hand at painting and sculpture, he was also a formidable inventor, anatomist and thinker.

As a child I was so fascinated by him that I chose the 15th century artist as a topic for several school projects. My teachers must have tired of reading my worthy – and wordy – efforts about him.

I think it’s fair to say that if the world had paid more attention to his discoveries, and the bulk of his notebooks and diaries had not been lost, the technological age might have arrived much sooner – along, it would now seem, with the designer handbag.

For the object of my childhood idolatry is being posthumously recognised as a talented accessories designer. Fashionable women everywhere will soon be coveting a da Vinci original.

Forget helicopters, submarines, tanks and diving suits (all da Vinci creations), in the 21st century we’ve moved on to an obsession with handbags, particularly handbags designed by gentlemen.

We can’t get enough of them. He’ll soon be up there with Tom Ford, Karl Lagerfeld, Giovanni Versace, Christian Dior etc, etc, – there are too many to mention.

Yes, this week I was intrigued by the news that an Italian accessory company is to produce a line of bags based on a da Vinci sketch from the mid 15th century.

The Pretiosa (precious) bag, in ornate carved leather, will be produced in limited numbers and sold for an, as yet, unspecified price.

One suspects that lowly-paid journalists such as myself will not even be able to afford to sniff the leather.

But there will be takers, of that I’m sure, because there seems to be no limit to what women will pay for a handbag.

Mulberry has made a fortune from the fact that fashionistas will fork out £795 for its iconic Bayswater bag and that’s just one of the WAGs’ favourite bag labels, there are many more.

The last time I went on a trip to Leeds with Secondborn we had a quick trawl through the designer bags in Harvey Nicks.

We do this as much for lols, as The Girl would say, as any serious intent to re-mortgage our house in order to buy somewhere to keep soggy tissues and my collection of old rail tickets and petrol receipts.

We try to guess the price of each bag before checking it out. It’s a game that ends with The Girl being outraged.

“What, £850. For THAT,” she’ll say, pointing to something which, to be perfectly frank, looks no better or worse than the bags to be found hanging from stalls in Huddersfield market (although I’m sure it will hold together better in the long run).

She’s particularly incensed by the bags of bling – huge totes made from metallic patent leather, encrusted with studs and covered in more buckles than the average 17th century dandy.

I should share her disgust for these symbols of excess and bad taste but, despite my best efforts at controlling it, I have a strong leaning towards bling.

However, a Leonardo bag is something entirely different. No-one who painted such exquisite angels and suave women could ever be accused of having bad taste.

We could all wear such a bag with confidence, even the more elderly among us having no fear of being accused of being mutton dressed as tart.

Fashion these days is frequently inspired by the past. It constantly reinvents what are essentially the same basic garments and accessories.

Interestingly, back in the 1950s and 60s fashion looked forward. It was futuristic and fresh. There were fabrics and styles never seen before. Since then, however, we’ve been going increasingly retro, so that it’s now almost essential to have a 1940s tea dress and a pair of 1950s Mary Janes in the wardrobe.

But a bag from the 15th century gives a whole new meaning to the word vintage.

I think I don’t just want one, I NEED one.