What hydraulic device did Leonardo da Vinci design to lift water using a screw mechanism?

Leonardo da Vinci studied and redesigned the Archimedes’ screw, a device for lifting water.

An Archimedes’ screw consists of a helical surface inside a cylinder or wrapped around a shaft. When the screw turns, water is carried upward along the spiral. Leonardo drew versions of the machine while investigating canals, irrigation, drainage, and other hydraulic problems.

The underlying invention is much older than Leonardo. It is traditionally associated with Archimedes of Syracuse, who is said to have developed or improved the device in the third century BCE. Leonardo’s contribution was not the original invention of the principle, but his detailed Renaissance study and mechanical adaptations.

The machine is still useful because it can move water with relatively simple construction. Modern versions may use electric motors, and related screws can move sludge, grain, and other bulk materials.