A siphon to carry a river over the mountains
With studies of a colonnade, an arch and a balustrade above
The lower half shows a great siphon ('cicognola') carrying a river up and over a high mountain: a branch drawn from the river c d b rises to the point a and falls again to point b, one arm outweighing the other so that water could be raised across the ridge. A note gives a channel 10 braccia high and 8 wide, and Leonardo claims the device could even convey ships onto the mountains. The upper half is filled with architectural studies — an arcade of columns beneath an entablature, an arch above a balustrade, and small structural sketches — none of which carries transcribed text.
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Every great river conducted over the highest mountains
Every great river can be conducted up onto the highest mountains by the principle of the siphon. A branch of the river c d b rises to point a and falls again to point b, carrying the water across the mountain.
One arm of the siphon outweighs the other
The descending line a b is of so much greater weight than the line a c that motion can be 'stolen' from the river. This difference of weight between the two columns is what drives the siphon.
Raising even ships onto the mountains
Leonardo claims that enough can be drawn off to serve for conveying ships up onto the mountains. A channel for the work is noted as 10 braccia high and 8 wide.
Colonnade, arch and balustrade studies
The upper part of the sheet carries architectural sketches: a row of columns beneath an entablature, an arch rising above a balustrade, and small structural details. No transcribed text accompanies these drawings.