Leonardo da Vinci designed a scythed chariot with rotating blades intended to cut through soldiers.
The design belongs to Leonardo’s studies of offensive military machines. It used a horse-drawn or mechanically driven chariot associated with a rotating shaft carrying scythes or blades. As the machine moved, the blades were intended to sweep through opposing troops, making it a terrifying example of Renaissance battlefield engineering.
Leonardo’s drawing is a design study, not evidence that this particular machine was successfully built and used in combat. Its concept also has ancient precedents: scythed chariots were associated with armies such as those of the Achaemenid Persian Empire. Leonardo reworked the idea with his own mechanical details and visual style.
It is distinct from Leonardo’s armored vehicle, commonly called his tank. The scythed chariot emphasized rotating cutting blades and speed, whereas the armored vehicle emphasized protection and mounted weapons.