What rotating machine did Leonardo da Vinci sketch to pump water using spiral chambers?

Leonardo da Vinci sketched an Archimedes’ screw as a rotating machine for lifting water.

The device consists of a helical surface or blade inside a cylindrical or partly enclosed tube. As the screw turns, water is carried upward along the spiral. Leonardo studied and drew versions of this ancient hydraulic machine, adapting the idea within his broader investigations of pumps, channels, and water motion.

The Archimedes’ screw was not invented by Leonardo. It is traditionally associated with the Greek mathematician and engineer Archimedes, who lived in the third century BCE. Leonardo’s contribution was to document, analyze, and incorporate hydraulic mechanisms into Renaissance engineering studies.

The machine remains useful because it can lift water with a simple rotating motion and relatively few moving parts. Modern versions are used in drainage, irrigation, wastewater treatment, and low-head hydropower. Its ancient origin makes it distinct from Leonardo’s original inventions.