Leonardo da Vinci described a diving suit for underwater exploration.
His notes from the early sixteenth century show a diver equipped with a mask, breathing tubes, and a protective suit. The system was intended to let a person remain underwater while breathing air supplied from above. Leonardo associated the design with military operations, including the possibility of secretly damaging enemy ships.
The proposed apparatus included cork or other buoyant elements to help the diver remain at the surface. A bag-like breathing arrangement is also shown in reconstructions of his design. Leonardo’s surviving material is not a complete modern engineering specification, and no reliable evidence shows that he tested the full suit.
The idea is an important step in the history of diving equipment, but it was not a self-contained scuba system. Modern scuba gear carries compressed gas and regulates its delivery underwater. Leonardo’s concept depended on an air supply connected to the surface, making it closer to an early surface-supplied diving suit.