What Leonardo da Vinci design featured a pyramid-shaped parachute about 7 metres wide?

Leonardo da Vinci’s parachute design was a pyramidal parachute about 7 metres wide and 7 metres high.

Leonardo sketched the design around 1485–1486 in the Codex Atlanticus. It consisted of a rigid, pyramid-shaped wooden frame covered with sealed linen. His notes proposed that a person could descend safely from a great height using the device.

The design is often called an early parachute concept, but Leonardo did not build or test it. Its shape differs from the round canopies used in modern parachutes, which are designed to inflate and create controlled drag. Leonardo’s structure was intended to remain open because of its frame.

In 2000, British adventurer Adrian Nicholas built and tested a replica using modern materials. He reported that it descended successfully, although he used a conventional parachute for safety near the ground. Leonardo’s sketch therefore represents an important early study of air resistance rather than a proven Renaissance aircraft.