Leonardo da Vinci sketched a pyramid-shaped parachute intended to slow a person’s fall.
Around 1485, Leonardo described a cloth canopy stretched over a wooden frame. His notes state that a person could jump from a great height while protected by the device. The design is usually interpreted as an early parachute concept, although Leonardo did not document a completed test.
The pyramid shape differs from most modern parachutes, which generally use rounded or specialized ram-air canopies. A parachute works by creating drag as it moves through the air, converting a dangerous fall into a slower descent. Leonardo’s proposal shows that he understood this basic aerodynamic principle centuries before practical parachuting developed.
A full-size replica was tested in 2000 by Adrian Nichols, who reported that it descended successfully but later cut away from it because of handling concerns. That experiment demonstrated feasibility, not historical proof that Leonardo’s original was flown.