The Antikythera Mechanism: still a mystery of Greek astronomy?

Abstract

nary surviving artefact from the ancient Greek world was discovered just one century ago. In 1900, sponge divers in the Mediterranean were forced away from their normal diving grounds by a storm. Off the coast of the island of Antikythera, they found a wreck which was to yield a priceless collection of Greek statues and other items. The yield from further dives during 1900–01 included an encrusted bronze lump, whose astronomical significance was only recognized some eight months after excavations had terminated, when it was found to have split apart. Containing some 30 gear wheels, and now known as the Antikythera Mechanism, this device is an order of magnitude more complicated than any surviving mechanism from the following millennium. There is no surviving precursor. The Mechanism was extensively studied and heroically publicized by the late Derek de Solla Price in a book, Gears from the Greeks (de Solla Price 1975), and a Scientific American article “An Ancient Greek Computer” (de Solla Price 1959). But despite its profound implications, the Mechanism does not seem to have been given the prominence it deserves. Indeed, it has even been commented (Price 1995) that the Antikythera Mechanism has sunk twice – the second time after publication of de Solla Price’s book! There are still many mysteries surrounding the device, in particular what was it for? And who made it? Just as fascinating are the implications for our view of the society in which it originated, and speculations on why nothing more advanced arose for a thousand years. In this article we summarize what is known about the Mechanism, try to place it in its historical context, and begin to re-interpret its function and purpose. The ship, a Roman merchant ship of 300 tons, had sunk on a well-used trade route from the Eastern to the Western Mediterranean. The wreck (de Solla Price 1975, Illesley 2000) and its contents are consistent with a date for the wreck of 80–50 BC. Jacques Cousteau (1978) recovered Pergamese coins from about 86–67 BC, which with Ephesian coins of 70–60 BC (Yalouris 1990) reinforces a view that this had been a treasure ship on its way to Rome including booty from Pergamon (circa 84 BC, Cary 1970) after the First Mithradatic War. A reasonable date for the wreck is thus 85–60 BC. The ship itself is built from much older timber, 200±43 BC (de Solla Price 1975).