Barrel Section, Pulley and a Mill Mechanism
A note on the bombard's bang as bursting air, with a firearm section, a pulley and a red-chalk mill part
The upper page shows, in pen, a small block-and-pulley and a longitudinal section through a firearm barrel, beside a note arguing that the noise of a bombard is nothing but the breaking-apart of condensed air. Below, in red chalk, is a detail of a mechanism that the transcription connects to the mill drawn on the following folio. The page thus combines an acoustic observation with mechanical studies.
On this page
The bombard's bang as bursting compressed air
Leonardo writes that this example proves how the noise made by the bombard is only the disaggregation of condensed air. The sectioned barrel serves to illustrate the sudden release and breaking-apart of the compressed air that produces the sound.
Longitudinal section of a firearm barrel
In pen the page shows a section through the barrel of a firearm, its bore hatched along the interior. It accompanies the note on the bombard's report.
Red-chalk mill mechanism and a pulley
At the top a small block-and-pulley (carrucola) is drawn, and at the foot of the page a red-chalk detail shows a mechanism the transcription links to the mill on the next folio. Together they are components of lifting and mill machinery.