The Antikythera Mechanism: Greece's Analog Computer

In 1901, sponge divers off the coast of Antikythera pulled a corroded bronze lump from a Roman shipwreck. It would take decades of X-ray and CT imaging to reveal its secret: a complex gear train that calculated lunar phases, eclipses, and the positions of the sun and moon with astonishing precision. Dating to around 100 BCE, the Antikythera Mechanism is the most sophisticated device known from the ancient world — a calendrical computer that embodied Hellenistic astronomy and engineering. This episode explores its discovery, the technology behind its 30-plus gears, the lost knowledge of Greek gearwork, and the ongoing debates about who built it and what it was used for. We also touch on other possible ancient analog devices and how the mechanism challenges assumptions about the ancient Greeks' mechanical capabilities. #AntikytheraMechanism #AncientGreece #HellenisticAstronomy #GreekEngineering #Shipwreck #AnalogComputer #Hipparchus #Archimedes #Rhodes #Posidonius #EclipsePrediction #MetonicCycle #SpongeDivers #CTScan #XRayImaging #HistoryOfScience #AncientTechnology #FexingoHistory Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo