The Antikythera Mechanism

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Dec 12, 2024

Mike Edmunds, Emeritus Professor of Astrophysics, and Liba Taub, Professor Emerita at Cambridge, delve into the mysteries of the Antikythera Mechanism. They discuss its discovery by sponge divers in 1900 and unveil its complex design as an ancient analogue computer. The conversation highlights how this 2,000-year-old device skillfully modeled astronomical movements and revolutionized our understanding of Greek engineering. Additionally, they explore the cultural connections between ancient astronomy and society, illustrating the sophisticated knowledge of the time.

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ANECDOTE

Shipwreck Discovery

In 1900, sponge divers, sheltering from a storm near Antikythera, discovered an ancient shipwreck.
The divers initially found statues, sparking worldwide interest, but a corroded bronze lump later revealed the true treasure.

INSIGHT

Initial Examination

The Antikythera Mechanism contains inscriptions related to astronomy, as well as precision gear wheels previously unknown from the classical world.
Its discovery changed our understanding of ancient Greek technology.

INSIGHT

Ancient Astronomy

Ancient Greek astronomy, as described by Geminus's Introduction to the Phenomena, focused on observable celestial movements.
The challenge was to explain the seemingly irregular movements of planets, also known as wanderers.

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Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the 2000-year-old device which transformed our understanding of astronomy in ancient Greece. In 1900 a group of sponge divers found the wreck of a ship off the coast of the Greek island of Antikythera. Among the items salvaged was a corroded bronze object, the purpose of which was not at first clear. It turned out to be one of the most important discoveries in marine archaeology. Over time, researchers worked out that it was some kind of astronomical analogue computer, the only one to survive from this period as bronze objects were so often melted down for other uses. In recent decades, detailed examination of the Antikythera Mechanism using the latest scientific techniques indicates that it is a particularly intricate tool for showing the positions of planets, the sun and moon, with a complexity and precision not surpassed for over a thousand years.

With

Mike Edmunds Emeritus Professor of Astrophysics at Cardiff University

Jo Marchant Science journalist and author of 'Decoding the Heavens' on the Antikythera Mechanism

And

Liba Taub Professor Emerita in the Department of History and Philosophy of Science at the University of Cambridge and Visiting Scholar at the Deutsches Museum, Munich

Producer: Simon Tillotson In Our Time is a BBC Studios Audio Production

Reading list:

Derek de Solla Price, Gears from the Greeks: The Antikythera Mechanism (American Philosophical Society Press, 1974)

M. G. Edmunds, ‘The Antikythera mechanism and the mechanical universe’ (Contemp. Phys. 55, 2014)

M.G. Edmunds, ’The Mechanical Universe’ (Astronomy & Geophysics, 64, 2023)

James Evans and J. Lennart Berggren, Geminos's Introduction to the Phenomena: A Translation and Study of a Hellenistic Survey of Astronomy (Princeton University Press, 2006)

T. Freeth et al., ‘Calendars with Olympiad display and eclipse prediction on the Antikythera mechanism’ (Nature 454, 2008)

Alexander Jones, A Portable Cosmos: Revealing the Antikythera Mechanism, Scientific Wonder of the Ancient World (Oxford University Press, 2017)

Jo Marchant, Decoding the Heavens: Solving the Mystery of the World’s First Computer (Windmill Books, 2009)

J.H. Seiradakis and M.G. Edmunds, ‘Our current knowledge of the Antikythera Mechanism’ (Nature Astronomy 2, 2018)

Liba Taub, Ancient Greek and Roman Science: A Very Short Introduction (Oxford University Press, 2022)