Leonardo da Vinci designed a parachute in a 1485–1486 codex sketch to help a person descend safely from a height.
His design was a pyramid-shaped wooden frame about 7 metres tall and wide, covered with linen. Leonardo reasoned that the trapped air beneath the canopy would slow a falling person. He did not build and test the device, so it remained a theoretical design during his lifetime.
The sketch appears in the Codex Atlanticus and is often discussed alongside Leonardo’s studies of flight. In 2000, British skydiver Adrian Nicholas constructed and tested a modern replica based on the drawing. The replica descended successfully, although Nicholas used a modern parachute for the final landing because the historical structure was difficult to control close to the ground.
Leonardo’s parachute was not the first parachute ever used, but it is an early detailed engineering proposal. Its importance lies in applying observation, geometry, and material design to a practical problem.