Garnerin Descends Over Paris by Parachute
On October 22, 1797, André-Jacques Garnerin made a celebrated parachute descent above Paris.
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A Descent From a Balloon
On October 22, 1797, André-Jacques Garnerin made a celebrated parachute descent above Paris. A balloon lifted the apparatus before the basket separated and descended under silk.
Not a Modern Skydive
Garnerin’s arrangement used a basket suspended below the parachute. Showing him in a contemporary harness with a packed reserve would misrepresent the technology.
Testing a New Way Down
Balloons had made ascent possible, but descent introduced its own engineering problems. The demonstration explored whether a flexible canopy could carry a person down safely.
A Public Experiment
Prints preserved in museums record the spectacle and its date. They also reflect the visual language of public ballooning demonstrations rather than an instrumented photographic record.
A Different Flight Milestone
The achievement was a parachute descent, not the first balloon ascent. Distinguishing those milestones reveals separate problems within the early history of human flight.
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