The Antikythera mechanism is an ancient Greek geared device built in the second century BC and recovered from a shipwreck near the island of Antikythera in 1901. It used a system of bronze gears to predict astronomical positions and eclipses years in advance and to track the cycle of the ancient Olympic and other Panhellenic games. It is the oldest known example of an analogue computer, and no geared machine of comparable complexity is known to have been built again until European astronomical clocks appeared roughly fourteen centuries later.
Facts
YearSourced to the subject's own accountSources vary: proposed construction dates include about 87 BC, between 150 and 100 BC, and 205 BC; the shipwreck it was recovered from is dated to approximately 70-60 BC, a firm upper bound. SignificanceSourced to the subject's own accountThe Antikythera mechanism is regarded as the oldest known example of an analogue computer, a geared astronomical calculator whose level of mechanical sophistication was not matched again in Europe until the fourteenth century. 1 Connections
In Field
Source Antikythera mechanism (Wikipedia)
Sources
1. Antikythera mechanism (Wikipedia)
WikipediaHistory section, dating paragraph
The instrument is believed to have been designed and constructed by Hellenistic scientists and been variously dated to about 87 BC, between 150 and 100 BC, or 205 BC.
lead section, sentence 2
It is the oldest known example of an analogue computer.
In Field: Mechanical Engineering, Categories
Antikythera Mechanism
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