Museum of Ancient Greek Technology
The Kotsanas Museum of Ancient Greek Technology is a museum in Katakolo, Elis, Greece. It was founded by Kostas Kotsanas and holds 200 operating reconstructions of mechanisms and inventions of the ancient Greeks covering the period from 2200 BC to 100 AD.
Established | 2005 |
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Location | Katakolo, Elis, Greece |
Type | Technology museum |
It is approximately 500 meters from the pier. The tour is conducted in English / French by the curator, while the exhibits are also accompanied by explanatory labels in English as well as rich audio-visual material (posters, diagrams & videos of their operation).
Exhibits
The museum's exhibits include:
- The Alarm Clock of Plato (the first wake-up mechanism in history)
- Automatic Opening of the Temple Gates after sacrifice on its altar (the first building automation in history)
- The “Static” Automatic Theatre of Heron of Alexandria (the first “cinema” in history)
- The Hydraulic Clocks of Ktesibios (the first precise automatic clocks in history)
- Heron’s Aeolosphere (the first steam machine in history)
- The Automatic Maid (the first operating robot in history)
- “Odometer” (the first road counter in history)
- The Movable Automatic Theatre of Heron of Alexandria (the first scheduled automobile “puppet show” in history)
- Crane With Winches for the elevation of mast and load (the first elevating mechanism in history)
- Perpendicular Mycenaean loom
- The “Web” of Penelope (Odysseus’ wife)
- The Catapult “Palindonos”, (the first siege machine in history)
- Bale-fires and Beacons (the first telecommunication method in history)
- Acoustic Telegraph (the first acoustic radar in history)
- Elevating Mechanism of Two-Sided Elevation (the first port building crane in history)
- Hysplex (the first starting mechanism in history)
- Ancient Greek musical instruments
Further reading
Kotsanas, Kostas (2009) - Familiar and Unfamiliar Aspects of Ancient Greek Technology (ISBN 978-9963-9270-2-9)
Kotsanas, Kostas (2008) - Ancient Greek Technology (ISBN 978-960-930859-5)
Kotsanas, Kostas (2009) - The Musical Instruments of the Ancient Greeks (ISBN 978-960-98804-2-8)