Leonardo da Vinci sketched a parachute as a pyramid-shaped canopy for descending from a height.
The design appears in the Codex Atlanticus, where Leonardo described a linen-covered wooden frame about 7.2 metres wide and deep and 7.2 metres high. He reasoned that the structure would provide enough resistance to air for a person to descend safely.
Leonardo did not build or test this parachute. His concept predates practical parachutes by centuries, and its shape differs from the flexible round canopies commonly associated with modern parachuting. In 2000, British skydiver Adrian Nicholas made a successful test jump using a replica, although he landed with a modern parachute for safety.
The sketch is often called the first known parachute design, but Leonardo’s proposal was theoretical rather than a demonstrated working device. Its importance lies in applying aerodynamic reasoning to controlled vertical descent.