Ctesibius

Ctesibius was a Greek inventor and mathematician in Alexandria, Ptolemaic Egypt, who flourished between 285 and 222 BCE. Very little is known of his life, but his inventions were well known in his lifetime and he was likely the first head of the Museum of Alexandria. He wrote the first treatises on the science of compressed air and its uses in pumps, which earned him the title of father of pneumatics. His most commonly known invention is the hydraulis, a water organ that is a predecessor of the modern pipe organ. He also improved the water clock and described one of the first force pumps. None of his written work has survived.