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Archimedes Timeline

(c. 287 BC – 212 BC)

Archimedes of Syracuse (c. 287–212 BC) was an ancient Greek mathematician, physicist, engineer, inventor, and astronomer. Regarded as one of the greatest mathematicians of all time, he made groundbreaking contributions to geometry, hydrostatics, and mechanics, including the principle of buoyancy, the Archimedes screw, and pioneering methods that anticipated modern calculus. Less

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Life and Mathematical Works

Wreath problem for King Hiero II

250 BC

According to Vitruvius, writing about two centuries after Archimedes' death, King Hiero II of Syracuse had commissioned a golden wreath for a temple to the immortal gods and supplied pure gold to be used by the goldsmith. Archimedes is credited with solving this problem, which concerns determining whether the goldsmith had adulterated the gold.

Image source: Archimedes

Wreath problem for King Hiero II

Approximation of pi in Measurement of a Circle

250 BC

In Proposition II of the Measurement of a Circle, Archimedes gives an approximation of the value of pi, showing that it is greater than 223/71 (approximately 3.1408) and less than 22/7 (approximately 3.1429), consistent with its actual value of approximately 3.1416.

Image source: Measurement of a Circle

Approximation of pi in Measurement of a Circle

Bounds on the square root of 3

250 BC

In the same treatise on the measurement of a circle, Archimedes asserts that the value of the square root of 3 lies between 265/153 (approximately 1.7320261) and 1351/780 (approximately 1.7320512), which he may have derived from a method similar to the one he used for approximating pi.

The Sand Reckoner counts grains of sand in the universe

240 BC

Archimedes proposed a number system using powers of a myriad of myriads (100 million, i.e., 10,000 x 10,000) and concluded that the number of grains of sand required to fill the universe would be 8 vigintillion, or 8x1063 in modern notation.

Image source: The Sand Reckoner

The Sand Reckoner counts grains of sand in the universe

Death of Archimedes at Syracuse

212 BC

Archimedes died in 212 BC during the Roman siege of Syracuse. Alfred North Whitehead later remarked that 'in the year 1500 Europe knew less than Archimedes who died in the year 212 BC,' underscoring how far ahead of his time his work was.

Ancient Accounts

Heron of Alexandria records triangle area formula

1 AD - 99 AD

Scholars in the medieval Islamic world attribute to Archimedes a formula for calculating the area of a triangle from the length of its sides, known today as Heron's formula due to its first known appearance in the work of Heron of Alexandria in the 1st century AD. It may have been proven in a lost work of Archimedes that is no longer extant.

Image source: Heron's formula

Heron of Alexandria records triangle area formula

Lucian describes ships set on fire at Syracuse

150 AD

The earliest account to mention ships being set on fire, by the 2nd century CE satirist Lucian of Samosata, does not mention mirrors, and only says the ships were set on fire by artificial means, which may imply that burning projectiles were used rather than a mirror-based heat ray.

Image source: Archimedes' heat ray

Lucian describes ships set on fire at Syracuse

Galen first mentions mirrors in the heat ray story

170 AD

The first author to mention mirrors in connection with the burning of Roman ships at Syracuse is Galen, writing later in the same century as Lucian. His account helped establish the popular image of Archimedes using bronze mirrors to focus sunlight on enemy ships.

Carmen de Ponderibus offers alternate account of crown problem

400 - 499

A different account of the wreath or crown problem is given in the Carmen de Ponderibus, an anonymous 5th-century Latin didactic poem on weights and measures once attributed to the grammarian Priscian. The poem describes the use of a hydrostatic balance to solve the problem of the crown.

Medieval Transmission

Eutocius writes commentaries on Archimedes' works

500 - 599

Eutocius' commentaries on Archimedes' works in the 6th century opened them to wider readership for the first time, making the great mathematician's ideas accessible to scholars beyond a small circle of specialists.

Isidore of Miletus compiles Archimedes' works

530 AD

Alexandrian mathematicians read and quoted Archimedes, but the first comprehensive compilation of his works was not made until around 530 AD by Isidore of Miletus in Byzantine Constantinople, preserving his writings for posterity.

Image source: Isidore of Miletus

Isidore of Miletus compiles Archimedes' works

Archimedes' works translated into Arabic

800 - 899

In the Middle Ages, Archimedes' work was translated into Arabic in the 9th century, transmitting his mathematical ideas to scholars of the Islamic world and preserving them through the medieval period.

Mappae clavicula text on assaying metals

1100 - 1199

The 12th-century text Mappae clavicula contains instructions on how to perform assaying of metals by calculating their specific gravities, and is considered a questionable attribution connected to Archimedes' methods involving hydrostatics.

Archimedes' works translated into Latin

1100 - 1199

In the 12th century, Archimedes' works were translated into Latin, making them an influential source of ideas for scientists during the Renaissance and in the Scientific Revolution.

Modern Rediscovery

Editio princeps of Archimedes published in Basel

1544

During the Renaissance, the Editio princeps (First Edition) was published in Basel in 1544 by Johann Herwagen with the works of Archimedes in Greek and Latin, which were an influential source of ideas for scientists during the Renaissance and again in the 17th century.

Lessing discovers the Cattle Problem manuscript

1773

Gotthold Ephraim Lessing discovered this work in a Greek manuscript consisting of a 44-line poem in the Herzog August Library in Wolfenbüttel, Germany, in 1773, bringing Archimedes' famous cattle problem back to scholarly attention.

Image source: Archimedes's cattle problem

Lessing discovers the Cattle Problem manuscript

Amthor solves the complete cattle problem

1880

Amthor first solved this version of the cattle problem in 1880, and the answer is a very large number, approximately 7.760271x10206544, demonstrating the extraordinary difficulty of the challenge posed in Archimedes' poem.

Papadopoulos-Kerameus transcribes palimpsest text

1899

In 1899, Papadopoulos-Kerameus published a short transcription of a 174-page goatskin parchment of prayers written in the 13th century. This publication would later lead Johan Ludvig Heiberg to examine the document more closely.

Image source: Archimedes Palimpsest

Papadopoulos-Kerameus transcribes palimpsest text

Discovery of the Antikythera mechanism

1902

Constructing mechanisms like those attributed to Archimedes would have required sophisticated knowledge of differential gearing, once thought beyond ancient technology. The discovery in 1902 of the Antikythera mechanism, another device built around 100 BC designed with a similar purpose, confirmed such devices were known to the ancient Greeks, with some scholars regarding Archimedes' device as a precursor.

Image source: Antikythera mechanism

Discovery of the Antikythera mechanism

Heiberg examines palimpsest in Constantinople

1906

In 1906, the Danish professor Johan Ludvig Heiberg visited Constantinople to examine a 174-page goatskin parchment of prayers, written in the 13th century, after reading Papadopoulos-Kerameus' short transcription published seven years earlier.

Lost works found in the Archimedes Palimpsest

1906

The older works in the palimpsest were identified by scholars as 10th-century copies of previously lost treatises by Archimedes. The discovery in 1906 of these works has provided new insights into how he obtained his mathematical results.

Method of Mechanical Theorems recovered via palimpsest

1906

This treatise was thought lost until the discovery of the Archimedes Palimpsest in 1906. Its recovery revealed how Archimedes used mechanical methods to discover geometric results, transforming understanding of his creative process.

Image source: The Method of Mechanical Theorems

Method of Mechanical Theorems recovered via palimpsest

Knorr and Sato set new chronological criteria

1978 - 1986

The works of Archimedes were ordered chronologically based on new terminological and historical criteria set by Knorr (1978) and Sato (1986), refining scholars' understanding of the development of his thought over his career.

Archimedes Palimpsest sold at auction

Oct 29, 1998

On 29 October 1998, the Archimedes Palimpsest was sold at auction to an anonymous buyer for a total of $2.2 million, ensuring continued conservation and study of the priceless manuscript containing lost works of Archimedes.

Netz argues Stomachion was a combinatorics problem

2003

Reviel Netz of Stanford University argued in 2003 that Archimedes was attempting to determine how many ways the pieces of the Stomachion could be assembled into the shape of a square, suggesting the treatise anticipated combinatorics by nearly two millennia.

Image source: Stomach

Netz argues Stomachion was a combinatorics problem

Legacy and Honors

SS Archimedes launched with screw propeller

1839

The world's first seagoing steamship with a screw propeller was the SS Archimedes, launched in 1839 and named in honor of Archimedes and his work on the screw, demonstrating the enduring influence of his inventions on modern technology.

Image source: SS Archimedes

SS Archimedes launched with screw propeller

California Gold Rush sparks new use of 'Eureka'

1848

The word 'Eureka,' famously attributed to Archimedes upon his discovery of a method to test the purity of gold, gained renewed prominence with the discovery of gold near Sutter's Mill in 1848, which sparked the California gold rush.

Image source: California Gold Rush

California Gold Rush sparks new use of 'Eureka'

Spain honors Archimedes on postage stamp

1963

Archimedes appeared on a postage stamp issued by Spain in 1963, part of a series of international philatelic tributes honoring the ancient mathematician and inventor.

Nicaragua issues Archimedes postage stamp

1971

Nicaragua issued a postage stamp honoring Archimedes in 1971, reflecting his global recognition as one of history's greatest scientists and mathematicians.

East Germany issues Archimedes postage stamp

1973

East Germany issued a postage stamp honoring Archimedes in 1973, continuing the tradition of commemorating his contributions to science and mathematics.

San Marino issues Archimedes postage stamp

1982

San Marino issued a postage stamp honoring Archimedes in 1982, adding to the many international tributes paid to the ancient Greek polymath.

Greece and Italy issue Archimedes postage stamps

1983

Both Greece and Italy issued postage stamps honoring Archimedes in 1983, celebrating the legacy of the Syracusan mathematician whose work laid foundations for modern science.

Key Facts

  1. Archimedes was born around 287 BC in Syracuse, a Greek city-state on the island of Sicily.
  2. He formulated the Archimedes' principle of buoyancy, explaining why objects float or sink in fluids.
  3. He invented the Archimedes screw, a device used to raise water for irrigation and drainage that is still in use today.
  4. His mathematical work included calculating the value of pi with remarkable accuracy and developing methods of exhaustion that anticipated integral calculus.
  5. He died in 212 BC during the Roman siege of Syracuse, reportedly killed by a Roman soldier despite orders to spare him.

Source

This Archimedes timeline was generated with the help of AI, using information found on the internet.

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