The Dial of Fate is a computer that appears to have traveled through time, inspired by the ancient Antikythera Mechanism.
Latest Indiana Jones Movie Stars an artifact ahead of its time: the Dial of Destiny. It’s no lie that there is an ancient machine that emerged from the seabed to tell us more about the history of the Mediterranean. The Antikythera Mechanism lay in the sea between the island of Crete and mainland Greece and is more than 2,000 years old. It is considered the most complex structure of antiquity that has survived the passage of time.
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a model of the cosmos
Contrary to what the film would suggest, the mechanism is of some sort astronomical calendar that allows observing the movements of five planets, the only ones known in Roman times: Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn. Using a complex system of gears, the dial displays the positions of each of these planets and the phases of the moon, depending on which date you wish to consult.
That is, it was an artifact made possible by the ancient inhabitants of the Mediterranean know what the exact position of the stars would be on a given day. In addition, the scientists concluded that the device was also capable of predicting eclipses and relatively accurately describing the position of bodies on the celestial vault.
“Imagine: somewhere in ancient Greece, someone built a mechanical computer!” explained Greek physicist Yanis Bitzakis, who is part of the international artifact research team. “This is a mechanism of truly amazing ingenuity,” added Tony Freeth, founder of the Antikythera Mechanism Research Project.
How did the Dial of Fate land on the ocean floor?
Antikythera, Greece/Getty Images
In the latest installment in the Indiana Jones saga, the characters discuss complex puzzles that Archimedes invented to protect his invention. although fwas found by sponge divers near the island of Antikythera in Greece as described in the film; Experts believe it ended up here due to historical coincidencemore than a complicated puzzle.
Research suggests the artifact was found as a victorious treasure on a Roman ship that sank off the coast of Greece. Also for this reason adds mystery to its origin and construction, since we are not entirely clear where it came from, where it went and why. Freeth clarifies that although he was found underwater, The likelihood that it was used as a navigational tool is slim.
Currently, the iconic device is on display and preserved at the National Museum of Archeology in Athens.
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