Image: Antikythera Mechanism

Image Source: Antikythera Mechanism Research Project

Several months ago, I published an article on the Antikythera Mechanism. The Antikythera Mechanism has been called “the world first computer.” The mechanism was developed by the Greeks around 100 B.C. Recently, scientists using modern-day techniques have concluded that the Antikythera mechanism was an astronomical calculator.

Nature Magazine (Volume 444, Issue 7119, pp. 587-591 [2006]) has published an article, “Decoding the Antikythera Mechanism: Investigation of an Ancient Astronomical Calculator,” that studies the nature and purpose of the mechanism. The article is available in PDF format free online here.

There is also a web page dedicated to the study of the Antikythera Mechanism. As described in their web page, The Antikythera Mechanism Research Project “is an international collaboration of academic researchers, supported by some of the world’s best high-technology companies, which aims to completely reassess the function and significance of the Antikythera Mechanism.”

The Antikythera Mechanism Research Project has produced an intensive bibliography of academic articles on the Antikythera Mechanism. The bibliography is available here.

Claude Mariottini
Professor of Old Testament
Northern Baptist Seminary

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