What animal-like automaton did Leonardo da Vinci design with a mechanical body and moving limbs?

Leonardo da Vinci designed a mechanical knight with a mechanical body and moving limbs.

The design was created for a Milanese court entertainment around 1495, during Leonardo’s period of service to Ludovico Sforza. Based on surviving sketches and anatomical studies, the knight could reportedly sit, stand, move its arms, and operate its jaw through an internal system of cables, gears, and pulleys.

The original automaton has not survived, so details of its performance come from reconstruction and interpretation rather than a complete working artifact. In 2002, roboticist Mark Rosheim built a model based on Leonardo’s drawings, helping demonstrate that the mechanism was mechanically plausible.

The machine is often called Leonardo’s robot, but that modern term should not imply electronic technology. It was a Renaissance automaton powered by mechanical transmission, designed for spectacle and courtly display.