If one name is immediately associated with Syracuse, it certainly is the
mathematical genius Archimedes
(ca 287-212 BC).
Yes, we all know he was Greek but never realized that he actually lived and
died in Sicily, which was then part of Magna Graecia.
It is unclear whether he was a
close friend or a relative of King
Hieron II of Syracuse (c.308-215 BC). Still, we know that the king
sponsored Archimedes’
trip to Alexandria to study at the renowned Library. Here he seems
to have met his friend Conon
of Samos and Eratosthenes of Cyrene, whom he mentioned in the introduction of two of his
works.
Archimedes was
working for Hieron II
and his son Gelon II constructing devices such as catapults, burning
mirrors, and an iron claw, a sort of crane with a grappling hook that could
lift the ships out of the water and make them capsize and sink. He is also
famous for inventing an orrery, i.e., a mechanical model of the solar system.
The sun is at its center, and the earth rotates around it. The device could
predict solar and lunar eclipses. Archimedes established the relationship between the
circumference and the diameter of a circle.
His best-known invention happened while he took
a bath and noticed that the water level rose when he stepped into the tub. This
led to his theory to calculate the volume of an object, and he was so excited
about his discovery that he ran out of his house, stark naked, shouting “Eureka!” I found it!
Vitruvius says that Archimedes
applied this principle when King
Hieron II asked him to determine whether the votive crown he had
ordered for a temple was indeed made with pure gold he had supplied. He
suspected the goldsmith to add some cheaper silver. A charming anecdote, no
doubt, but it may not be entirely accurate as the calculations are far more
complex than that.
Another invention called the Archimedes’ screw has been
used successfully over the centuries and still is in those places where water
has to be moved from a lower level to higher grounds or canals. His system,
consisting of a revolving screw inside a cylinder, even applies to moving coal
or grain. There are, however, discussions that tend to attribute the invention
to the Babylonians who used the principle to irrigate their Hanging Gardens.
As written down by Athenaeus of Naucratis, history tells us that King Hieron II asked Archimedes in 240 BC to
build a large ship to carry huge supplies. It also should be used in war as
well as for pleasure. It was, in fact, a catamaran weighing 4,000 tons for
which timber from Mount Etna was used together with rosewood and ivory from
Africa and rope from Iberia
– nothing less! It could transport 600 people and was enhanced with a temple
dedicated to Aphrodite, a gymnasium, and even a garden! Because of its size,
the ship that was appropriately called the Syracusia would leak considerably through the hull,
but Archimedes’
screw could pump the excess bilge water out. As the boat was far too big to
anchor in most harbors, Hieron
II generously sent it to Ptolemy IV Philopator in Egypt
loaded with wheat when Egypt
was struck by famine.
It should be noted that Hieron II perfectly
realized the advantages of taking side with Rome rather than resisting it, and his
sixty-year-long reign brought the city great prosperity. This especially shows
in the colossal altar used to sacrifice to Zeus. As many as 450 bulls could be
offered in one day. It is still there for us to see, nearly 200m long and 23 meters wide, making it
the most enormous altar ever known. Initially, it was 15 meters high until the
Spaniards reused the stones to fortify the harbor
of Syracuse
iin 1526. We also owe this king the construction
of the largest theater of the Greek world of his days that could hold 15,000
people. When Hieron II
died in 215 BC, his successor decided to choose the Carthaginians' side, who
were threatening Rome
at the time. This event had unfortunate results for our dear Archimedes.
During the Second Punic War, the Romans, after a two-year-long siege,
finally took possession of Syracuse. The leading general, Marcus Claudius Marcellus,
had issued clear instructions that whoever found Archimedes should treat him kindly and not
harm him. Yet an inpatient soldier noticing that the old man refused to meet
his general killed Archimedes,
totally absorbed in his mathematical diagram. Apparently, the soldier had not
realized that he was addressing Archimedes
– this is at least what Plutarch
tells us.
Not a single trace is left of Archimedes in today’s in today’s Syracuse,
except for a square in the heart of Ortygia that is named after him, Piazza Archimede. Recently
a tiny science museum has opened there, entirely dedicated to the city’s famous
citizen exhibiting many interactive displays and models that illustrate some of
his inventions and theories like the Stomachon, a 14-piece composition puzzle; a sphere
contained by the cylinder; and the burning mirrors. These are all very
intriguing and very much worth the visit.
[Drawings taken from Wikipedia]
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