Many hundreds of years before the development of modern science as we know it, people made incredible strides in understanding the world around them by developing groundbreaking scientific instruments. Sometimes made with primitive materials and limited resources, these technological tools helped people make remarkably accurate and advanced calculations and observations—paving the way for today’s observatories, clocks, and computers.
These mechanisms, some of which date back as far as 5,000 years ago, were developed on different continents by a wide range of cultures—from advanced metallurgy in India to the influential astronomical calendars of the ancient Maya. Amazingly, some of these ancient scientific instruments have been preserved through the millennia, and can be visited today. Each provides a window into how our ancestors made sense of the world around them.
ATHENS, GREECE
Antikythera Mechanism
Regarded as the first known analog computer, the 2,000-year-old bronze mechanism could make remarkably precise mathematical and astronomical calculations. Called a “clockwork computer,” it precedes any machine of comparable complexity by more than a millennium.
TATEV, ARMENIA
Gavazan Column at Tatev Monastery
Nearly a thousand years before the development of the modern seismograph, Armenian monks measured earthquakes with this tilting pillar.
CAIRO, EGYPT
Nilometer
As early as 5,000 years ago, these submerged columns were used to measure the waters of the Nile so that farmers in ancient Egypt could know whether to expect flood or famine.
BEIJING, CHINA
Beijing Ancient Observatory
This ancient Chinese observatory contains early astronomical technology, including exotic instruments such as the azimuth theodolite and the armillary sphere, both used to measure stellar distances.
LOVELL, WYOMING
Bighorn Medicine Wheel
These sacred hoops have been built by American Indians for as many as 5,000 years. Among other purposes, they served as astronomical calendars. The Bighorn Medicine Wheel is still an accurate predictor of the summer solstice.
JAIPUR, INDIA
Jantar Mantar
Among the stone instruments constructed for this observatory is the Samrat Yantra, a 73-foot-tall sundial—to this day the largest ever built. Though indistinguishable in design from other sundials of its time, it is far and away the most accurate.
SAMARKAND, UZBEKISTAN
Ulugh Beg Observatory
This Muslim observatory was constructed around an enormous astronomical instrument that remains mostly intact: a monumental meridian arc called the Fakhrī sextant. The largest of its kind ever built, it successfully measured the length of the year to within 25 seconds of the actual value, and accurately determined the axial tilt of the Earth.
NEW DELHI, INDIA
Iron Pillar of Delhi
This 1,600-year-old, rustproof pillar is a simple example of the exquisite craft and knowledge of ancient peoples. At 98 percent pure wrought iron, the column is a testament to the high level of skill achieved by ancient Indian metallurgists.
GYEONGJU, SOUTH KOREA
Cheomseongdae
As one of the oldest scientific sites in the world, Cheomseongdae provides a window into how astronomy was conducted many hundreds of years ago. Some have claimed there is numerical significance imbued in every brick.
SALISBURY, ENGLAND
Medieval Clock at Salisbury Cathedral
This wrought-iron clock mechanism is thought to be the Cathedral’s original mechanical clock, dating to 1386—making it the oldest working clock in the world. The design of the clock introduced to Salisbury the relatively new concept of standardized hours.
CHICHEN ITZA, MEXICO
El Caracol – The Observatory of Chichen Itza
A spiral-shaped monument not only to the architectural skill of the ancient Maya, but also to their surprisingly advanced understanding of the heavens.
DANDARAH, EGYPT
Dendera Light
While not a scientific tool itself, the depiction on this stone relief has been controversially interpreted as evidence of a modern lighting system in ancient Egypt. It’s been used to argue that ancient cultures were much more technologically advanced than we believe today.
Egyptian archaeologists working near the ancient city of Thebes (modern-day Luxor) have made a stunning discovery. A tomb located near the Draa Abul Nagaa necropolis containing eight mummies, colorful wooden coffins and more than 1,000 Ushabti (small carved figurines) has been unearthed. They believe these artifacts to be around 3,500 years old.
Lead by Mostafa Waziri, the team discovered the tomb on the west bank of the Nile River in Luxor. The tomb was likely built during the 18th Dynasty (1550–1298 B.C.), but the team thinks it was opened during the 21st Dynasty (about 3,500 years ago) to add additional mummies (and artifacts) to protect them from tomb raiders.
The Ministry of Antiquities in Egypt released a statement saying the tomb belonged to a nobleman named Userhat who worked as a Luxor judge. Usherhat died of a disease, and the team of archaeologists are trying to determine which one. They went on to explain that the tomb is T-shaped, with “an open court leading into a rectangular hall, a corridor and an inner chamber.” White, orange, green and patterned pots were found in the tombs.
The Ushabti figurines (believed to help the deceased with their responsibilities in the afterlife) were found inside a 9-meter (30ft) shaft within the tomb, which also contained a wooden mask and a handle to a sarcophagus lid.
The sarcophagi are covered with intricate drawings in red, blue, black, green and yellow and, for the most part, are well-preserved. They also feature the carved faces of the dead. The team is working on restoring the wooden coffins, as well as examining a mummy wrapped in linen which was found inside one of the coffins.
Egypt’s antiquities minister Khaled el-Enany expressed his shock to reporters, “It was a surprise how much was being displayed inside” the tomb.
What does this discovery mean for the future? Spokeswoman Nevine el-Aref said there was, “evidence and traces that new mummies could be discovered in the future.” Waziri stressed that the excavation is still ongoing, hoping that more will be revealed about the tomb’s owner as they continue.
A separate room has also been uncovered, but the excavations haven’t started on it yet.