“Unveiling the Ingenious Visionary of Ancient Greece: A Forgotten Titan Who Redefined Innovation”
Another of Heron’s inventions intended for temple use is a surprisingly modern one: the vending machine. Designed to dispense a small quantity of holy water for ritual ablution, this device consisted of a small water tank with a spout and flapper valve connected to a small balance beam. When a 5-drachma coin was dropped through a slot in the top, it fell onto the balance beam and opened the valve, dispensing the holy water. A moment later the coin slipped off the beam and the valve closed; the accumulated proceeds could then be collected by the priests. Heron appears to have based his design on a similar hygiene device invented by Philo of Byzantium, who lived and worked in Alexandria 300 years before. Philo’s device consisted of a water tank from which protruded a small metal hand holding a ball of pumice stone – commonly used for scrubbing. When a user removed the ball, the hand retracted into the device and water began flowing from the spout. A few moments later, the hand re-emerged holding a fresh stone.
Far more influential among Heron’s many inventions, however, was the Hydraulis, an early form of pipe organ. This consisted of a set of up to 19 vertical pipes derived from panpipes blown by a clever hydraulic mechanism. As the operator pumped a handle, air was forced through a one-way valve into an inverted bowl-shaped chamber submerged in a tank of water. Air from the chamber was drawn off to blow the organ pipes, the weight of the water in the tank maintaining this air at a constant pressure. In this manner, the Hydraulis was able to sustain more consistent notes than a regular bellows-powered organ. The Hydraulis proved extremely popular, seeing widespread use across the ancient Mediterranean world. Indeed, an inscription at Delphi dating from C.E. describes how a musician named Antipatros “covered himself in glory” by playing the Hydraulis for two days straight in a competition. It was reportedly Roman Emperor Nero’s favourite instrument, and was played at all sorts of public events in Rome, from gladiatorial games and theatrical performances to triumphal processions, wedding banquets, and swearing-in ceremonies for public officials. So widely used was the Hydraulica that, unlike most of Heron’s inventions, physical remains have been found – most notably in the ruins of a Roman Clothworker’s Guild hall in Budapest, Hungary, which burned down in the 3rd Century C.E. Intriguingly, Heron later developed a windmill-powered version of the Hydraulica, saving the operator – or his assistant – from having to pump the instrument by hand.
