Leonardo da Vinci designed a parachute with a large pyramid-shaped canopy.
His parachute sketch appears in the Codex Atlanticus and is generally dated to around 1485. Leonardo described a structure made from linen held open by a wooden frame. The design was intended to let a person descend safely from a height.
Leonardo did not test the parachute, and its original materials would have made it heavy. In 2000, British skydiver Adrian Nicholas built and tested a modern reconstruction based on the drawing. He reported that it descended successfully, although he used a modern parachute for the final part of the jump because of safety concerns.
Leonardo’s design is not the same as a modern fabric parachute, but it shows a correct basic insight: a broad canopy increases air resistance and slows a falling body. The invention is often confused with his flying-machine sketches, which were intended to produce lift rather than controlled descent.