What type of pump did Leonardo da Vinci design for raising water?

Leonardo da Vinci designed a centrifugal pump for raising and moving water.

A centrifugal pump uses rotating motion to give water outward force. In Leonardo’s design studies, rotating components were arranged to move water continuously rather than relying only on repeated piston strokes. This made the concept relevant to canals, drainage, and other hydraulic work.

Leonardo’s notebooks contain many investigations of water flow, including pumps, canals, turbines, and mechanisms for lifting water. His drawings often explored how rotation could be converted into useful hydraulic action, although not every surviving sketch represents a completed or tested machine.

The centrifugal-pump principle later became important in industrial machinery. Leonardo should not be credited with inventing every modern pump, but his hydraulic studies show an early understanding of using rotating machinery to move fluids.