Ancinet flamethrower

The History channel is keeping me up. I should be asleep.
"Ancient Discoveries" is on.

The roman's apparently had flame throwers. Looks like a pump type device with a sticky flammable liquid that could have stuck to it's victims and burned them alive. The Romans had some awesome war machines. The bolt shooting machines were pretty cool. I don't like war or how the Romans ran over everyone but the machines are prety amazing considering how long ago it was. This is BC stuff.

Then there is the battering ram, Ram Tourtouse. It was armour plated, and apparently had wet bags of seaweed on it for fireproofing.

There were rolling towers with soldiers inside.

Archametese (don't know if I spelled the name right) was a mathematition and built war mahines and may have built a steam canon.

Well there is another "Ancient Discoveries" on. I've got to get Tivo. This one is speaking of automated factories and solar energy and hydrolics and perhaps electricity. And they are mentioning the Bagdad battery.

Troy

I believe you're thinking of "Greek Fire"; used on boats to set other boats on fire. I don't know the ingredients, but they were relatively harmless until in contact with water, and then it became combustible. (my 2 cents)

Ancient automated factories? Whaa?

Vetruvious is a name that comes up in this episode. Don't know how his name is spelled? Water pumps, water powered machines, wow!

Roman water wheels moving water up from 29 meters underground.

Waterwheels were also used to make flour. A water powered factory making flour! Predates indutrail revolution by around 1600 years.

Used gravity and water pressure to move water over large distances. Plumbing system, and flushing toilets, hello! Using thermal power for bath houses. Some Romans had it pretty good! Glass windows

Archamtes death ray story? Using many mirrors (maybe polished shields) to burn the Roman fleet by focusing the sun? It can be done. Again I don't know if I spelled the name right?


Troy

Yup, I think they may have named it "Greek Fire" on the show.

Another "Ancient Discoveries" is on the History Channel. Must sleep, got to work tommorrow. I saw part of this one earlier. This is one on the Lake Nemi ships, which were pleasure ships. Running water, possibly baths.

Troy

[edit on 12-12-2005 by cybertroy]

I think you're reffering to Archimedes and the seige of Syracuse.

Archimedes oversaw the defense of Syracuse and kept the Roman attack at bay with his mirrors hanging on the towers.

The Romans then starved the city with an ongoing seige and managed to breach it's defences and Archimedes was killed.

If you want some more info on his weapons search google for "Archimedes Claw" and "Archimedes Mirrors."

found this link... short read. i like how it seems the byzantines kept the formulas such a secret they forgot how to build these things. or you could take the frat-boy approach... where "greek fire" is simply a lighter and some flatulance... (sp?) so the real greeks invent this thing... and the fake american greek societies degrade it... fitting.

www.ucalgary.ca...

Apparently the ingreediants for 'greek Fire' were kept secret but that ultimately led to the death of it.

Early napalm. Most likely contained an alkaline metal.

Thanks for the link.

I just think it's cool how advanced the folks were. They weren't that dissimilar to us. What else are we going to find?

I think our present technology should be futher along. We regressed from an advanced civilization to a less advanced civilization, and are now advancing again.

We couldn't have been too stupid back then.

Troy

greek fire there's no place like wiki

there is a show on bbc or discovery where people from different horizons would get together to rebuild ancient machines , boats , chinese bridges etc... the name escapes me but one must admit that a lot of knowledge has been lost indeed when seeing some of the results . Machines would be usable once or twice before breaking or become useless (but still, they worked once or twice) remember them bulding a huge roman onagre or ballista very impressive it is said the projectile could easily pierce through half a dozen armored men
ancient "technology" is often underestimated

The Nemi ships (luxury boats) were cool. Some of the brass parts were as good as parts made today.

Troy

Greek Fire was the early version of what we now have, Napalm. There's a slight chemical difference, but that's only because of the fact that we've found new chemicals through the time since the Ancient Greeks.

I've been studying Greece & Rome My whole life, I know all kinds of info about those times.

Ancient "flamethrower" manual:

Find a pig.
Drench it in oil or something similar.
Set it on fire.
Make it run towards the enemy.

All done.

Hi.. this is my first post here, although I've been reading this forum for a while without making comments to anything.

(g) Yes, the ancients had a lot of excellent engineering skills that they developed throughout the ages. Because the study of these periods is no longer common in today's schools, it often takes people by surprise.

Archimedes was a theoretical mathemetician and polymath ... somewhat like an early Leonardo da Vinci -- if Leonardo happened to like math instead of art best of all. He's credited with developing a number of machines (the "Archimedes screw" is a sort of modified spiral ramp that lifts water from a river to a higher elevation) and greatly adding to our knowledge of math and the study of philosophy as well.

Heh. I thought everyone knew about Greek fire!

People back then were the same as people now, same brain, body, mental capabilites, etc. There wasn't an advanced civ that fell apart and built back up to now, people've allways been clever and able to make good use of stuff around them.

Unless you consider classical civilization to be the advanced civilization. Then the collapse of the empire and the loss of greek and roman science and philosophy could be seen as the decline. But man surpassed that technology a long time ago.

Vitruvius would be the other person you were talking about.

Archimedes would be the other guy.

Vitruvius was Roman and one of their frst published architect, however the only building known to be involved with him was the basilica at Fanum Fortunae [Now Fano] but the basilica no longer exists.

Archimedes was a Greek mathematician. It has been claimed that due to his machines he kept the Roman's at bay in the defense of Syracuse against the Roman siege in the First and Second Punic Wars.

Some of the inventions linked to Archimedes are

• Claw of Archimedes
  
• Array of Mirrors to set fire to ships

and many others.

Greek Fire has never been proven to have anything to do with these two men, however it was an amazing weapon when used against an enemy. The fire itself could only be put out by vinegar or sand...

It was an amazing invention and from the shows I have seen on it, it ignited on contact with water.

Aw yeah, I saw that show. Pretty cool. The flamethrower was a handheld piston operated pipe basiclly not much different than a supersoaker. . . filled with gas and a candle on the front. It was pretty awesome. I can just imagine all a flamethrower burning through a phalanx.

There was also this ginormous siege tower that moved 3 feet a day.

Really?

Sorry, but I have never heard of anything like that and surely it would be pointless...

To even more 3km, would take 1000days...

I believe it was helepolis, helenpolis? Apparently melted down and used to make the colassus.