Leonardo da Vinci sketched a pyramid-shaped parachute for slowing a person’s fall from the sky.
His design appears in the Codex Atlanticus and consists of a rigid pyramidal frame covered with cloth. Leonardo proposed a structure about 7.2 metres high and with a square base of similar width. The broad canopy would create air resistance during descent.
Leonardo did not document a successful test, and the design was not a practical modern parachute because its rigid frame would have been heavy and difficult to control. Its importance lies in recognizing the basic principle that a large surface can slow falling motion.
The sketch is sometimes described as the first parachute concept, although earlier cultures had stories and experiments involving falling devices. In 2000, British skydiver Adrian Nicholas tested a reconstruction and reported that it descended successfully, though modern parachutes remain far more controllable.