Beyond the four great inventions of China that included the compass, gunpowder, paper making, and printing, there were also many ancient technological inventions that can be said to have come way ahead of their time, or so is our arrogance making us believe.
Technology has evolved over the years that some technological inventions of just a few years back at today totally useless and unrecognizable. Once upon a time, making it tomato sauce was such hard work I see how to use a grinding stone crush your tomatoes one after the other. Let’s not even get started on the source of heat for cooking, google can help you out of that.
Did you know, however, the ancient times were not entirely devoid of technology? In fact, some innovations were so amazing that they are able to survive until modern times.
Ancient Technological Inventions
1. Hydro technology
In recent times, Peru has been faced with serious water conditions such as having polluted water and the effects of environmental change on the country. This problem seems to be paramount in Lima and it has forced Sedapal, the water utility body to look backward for a solution. In 500AD, the Wari culture built a stone canal which collected mountain water especially during the raining seasons I set them down the mountains into the springs. This helped the people of that time to fight the water pollution menace and might as well help today.
2. Flexible glass
In 2012, Corning made a flexible glass known as the Willow glass which was resistant to heat and very foldable. This was a very remarkable fit but not the first of it’s kind or so history claims. There are different accounts from Petronius, Pliny the Elder and Duo Cassius about a glassmaker who made the ‘vitrium flexile’ buy sadly was ordered to be killed by the Emperor who considered it a possible means of devaluation to precious stones. Truthfully, his invention was way above his time.
3. Stone walls
Peru just seems to have had a lot going on for them in ancient times. So they also had stone walls built so smugly and to fit in Inca that it has beat the imagination and knowledge of all till date. The stones were placed with each fitting accurately to the one adjacent it, irrespective of angle or shape. How this was even a possibility beats my mind!
4. Town planning
Digging up old sites has countless times proved very interesting and brought to bare so many unimagined treasures. When Archaeologists dug up Mahenjoro in Pakistan, they knew it was 5000 years old but they never expected a beautifully planned city with well laid out sewers, stone walls, cisterns, wells with good drinking water and what have you. It would be no surprise if they had a detailed course on town planning.
5. Cement
Another of the ancient technological inventions is Cement. Today, cement is basically a mixture of clay and limestone brought to a hot temperature of 1450 Celsius and gives up so much carbon to the atmosphere. This is in contrast to the ancient Roman cement made from volcanic rock, lime and seawater and which consumed less fuel being mixed at 900 Celsius and also caused little or no pollution. Not surprisingly, it is also said to have been much more durable than what we have today.
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6. Death ray
In 2004, Discovery Channel’s TV show, Mythbusters, unsuccessfully tried to recreate an ancient weapon called the death ray and so termed it a myth. However, some MIT students in 2005 not only recreated it but also set a boat ablaze. This weapon was built by the Great Archimedes in 212 BC and was used by the lost city of Syracuse in Sicily against enemy ships.
7. Damascus steel
This strong steel made from a combination of different materials and Asian wootz steel around 300BC was able to cut other metals. The recipe for this steel was guarded so jealously that all attempts to recreate such amazing quality failed until recent times. The Levant people from over 2000 years ago sure had a swell time making swords from this and using them.
8. Wheels
The Mesopotamians are known for the creation of pottery in ancient times. This love led to the invention of wheels around the time of 3500 BC and in 3 centuries, it was added to chariots and today, we have it on almost everything. This is definitely one ancient invention that still draws awe today as it makes so many machines very useful to man’s survival.
9. Steam Engine
The first steam engine in the world was invented by Heron Alexandrinus who is also known as Hero of Alexandria. Referred to as aeolipile, after the Greek gods of wind. The Steam engine was designed with nozzles to expel steam which was created by boiling water. The next reinvention of steam engine was in 1577 by Taqu al-Din who was a philosopher, engineer, and an astronomer.
From all indications, the people of old times had technology going on for them and as modern, as we are, we might still have a lesson or two to draw from them. These ancient technological inventions have opened the doors for newer things.
