What machine did Leonardo da Vinci design to produce a continuous stream of water?

Leonardo da Vinci designed versions of the Archimedes’ screw to produce a continuous stream of water.

The Archimedes’ screw is an ancient water-lifting machine consisting of a helical surface inside a tube or trough. When rotated, it carries water upward from a lower level to a higher one. Leonardo studied and drew screw-based water machines as part of his investigations into hydraulics and mechanical engineering.

Leonardo did not invent the original screw. Ancient Greek sources traditionally associate it with Archimedes, and the machine was already used for irrigation and drainage before Leonardo’s time. Leonardo’s contribution was to analyze, adapt, and illustrate related mechanisms in his notebooks.

This distinction prevents a common attribution error. Leonardo is associated with ingenious redesigns and engineering studies, but not every machine he drew originated with him.