One of the great inventors of Roman times was Heron (dates unknown), who lived in Egypt during the first century. He used steam power to create toys with moving parts and doors that opened automatically. Another one of his inventions has been called the world’s first steam engine, because it used the steam from boiling water to spin a metal ball. Modern jet engines use some of the same principles as this device for their extraordinary power, with heated gases spinning a metal fan. Heron also built what might be considered the world’s first vending machine. People put a coin in the top and received a small cup of water.
Ancient Greek writers wrote about the gods using gold and other metals to make creatures that behaved as humans did. Over time, this idea led to the creation of au-tomata-machines that move on their own. Heron made several automata. One was a self-moving stand that could carry small items. The movement of sand within the stand lowered a weight that was connected to wheels along several pulleys. As the weight moved, the wheels turned. The stands were used during plays to create a sense of magic, or to carry small automatic theaters that Heron also built. Again, weights and pulleys moved objects, this time small metal figures that looked like people and animals.
The Romans excelled as builders, and their engineering skills helped them make some of the largest and most complex grain mills ever known. The Romans needed huge amounts of grains to feed their armies and citizens, which required large mills that could grind the grains into flour. One of the largest was built near Arles, France, during the fourth century. An aqueduct carried water to eight pairs of waterwheels, which were located on both sides of the mill buildings. The turning wheels were connected by wooden gears to the large stones that ground the grains. Perhaps as much as 10 tons of flour or corn could be ground every day.
Romans also used waterwheels in their mining operations. For centuries, miners working below the ground had to deal with water flooding into the mines. The Romans built wheels with containers on them that scooped up the water as the wheel spun and dumped it on a slightly higher level. A series of wheels could remove the water from a mine almost 100 feet deep. People provided the power that turned the wheels-slaves walked on treads attached to the wheels’ outer rims.
The mill operations at Arles show that the Romans used technology to guarantee a steady supply of food. In the fields of France, farmers used what may have been the world’s first reaper, a machine that cuts down ripe grains. The Roman invention had a cart with a set of sharp blades across the front. A donkey, with a farmer behind it, pushed the cart through the field. The blades cut the grain, which then fell into the cart. A larger version of this reaping machine may have been pushed by oxen.
The Romans were the world’s first people to build large fish farms. Farmers cut tanks out of rocks near the sea and raised such fish as sea bass and mullet, as well as shellfish, particularly oysters. Pathways called sluices carried seawater to and from the tanks, which could be as much as 115 feet long and 58 feet wide.
World History
