Leonardo da Vinci described a parachute as a pyramid-shaped wooden frame covered with linen in a note dated around 1485.
His design was intended to let a person descend safely from a height. The frame was about 7.2 metres high and wide, giving the canopy a large surface area to resist falling through the air. Leonardo did not record a documented human test of the design.
The concept is often called an early parachute, but it was not a modern fabric parachute with suspension lines and a pack. In 2000, British adventurer Adrian Nicholas built and tested a replica based on Leonardo’s proportions. The replica reportedly descended successfully, although Nicholas used a modern parachute for the final landing because the rigid structure could be dangerous near the ground.