When an ancient three-barrelled cannon was discovered by schoolchildren, museum officials would have known they had stumbled on a rare find.
But now, 40 years after the discovery of the unique weapon, they have learned just how important it is - the gun is a prototype designed by Leonardo Da Vinci himself.
The cannon was discovered in a Croatian fort, but only now has it been confirmed it was designed more than 500 years ago by the artist and inventor.
Da Vinci was famous for his weapons of war which were hugely in demand among the rival factions in the northern Italian cities.
He was the first to invent a breech-loading machine gun with several cannons in rotation which meant soldiers could be firing one, loading another and cooling the third.
The triple-barrel cannon, apparently one of his less successful designs, had been dumped in the Klicevica border fortress near the southern town of Benkovac.
A group of schoolchildren discovered it and told museum officials in the town - but its 15th century origin remained a mystery until today.
The original Da Vinci designs are regarded as forerunners for the modern machine gun. Until now the only Da Vinci cannons on display in Italy have been replicas.
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