The researchers found that artisans who lived 2,000 years ago used some ancient technology to apply thin films of metals to statues and other objects that surpassed today's standards for the production of DVDs, solar panels, electronic devices and other items.
This extraordinary discovery, published in the journal Accounts of Chemical Research, points to "the high level of competence of the artisans of this ancient period, who were able to produce objects of such quality that could not be surpassed in those days, and which modern technology has not yet achieved," they write scientists from the American Chemical Society, led by Gabriel Maria Ingo, who made this discovery.
Gilding and silvering are long-known processes based on the use of mercury, and were used in ancient times to cover items such as jewelry, statues and amulets with thin layers of gold or silver. Although they were most often used for decoration, they were sometimes used for fraudulent purposes to give the appearance of gold or silver to less valuable metals.
From a technological point of view, ancient craftsmen 2,000 years ago somehow managed to make these metal coatings incredibly thin, tight and take any shape in some unknown way, which made it possible to save precious metals and improve their durability - and our modern technology has not yet been able to reach this level perfection.
Obviously, without any knowledge of chemical-physical processes, the ancient craftsmen systematically manipulated metals to obtain extraordinary results. They have developed a range of techniques involving the use of mercury as an adhesive to coat objects with thin films of precious metals.
This discovery suggests that in ancient times, in some unknown way, humans possessed an extremely high understanding of advanced technological concepts and processes that cannot yet be explained with the level of data we have.
Another example of ancient technology is the famous 2000-year-old Antikythera Mechanism - a metal device made up of a complex combination of gears, which, according to researchers, was used to calculate the positions of celestial bodies. And also the Baghdad Battery - an earthen pot containing a copper cylinder with an iron rod in the center, which appears to be an early form of an electric battery.
The level of technological sophistication in this case is striking for the period of two thousand years ago, and raises many questions about where and how this knowledge came to people of that time.
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