Leonardo da Vinci sketched a pyramid-shaped parachute as a device for descending safely from a height.
His notes describe a linen canopy supported by poles, with a broad square base and a height of about seven metres. The design appears in the Codex Atlanticus, where Leonardo reasoned that the structure could slow a person's fall by creating air resistance.
Leonardo did not record a practical test of this parachute. The concept is therefore an early theoretical design, not proof that he built and flew one. In 2000, British skydiver Adrian Nicholas tested a reconstructed version based on Leonardo's measurements and descended successfully, although he used a modern parachute for the final landing because the reconstructed frame was difficult to control.
The design is often confused with Leonardo's aerial screw, which was intended as a lifting machine rather than a descent device. Modern parachutes use flexible fabric canopies and suspension lines instead of Leonardo's rigid pyramid framework.