In 350 BC. mathematician and founder of mechanics Archytas Tarentsky invented the wooden mechanical dove.
Archit's invention is often called the first robot, and in the light of modern technology, sometimes the first drone, the first machine capable of flying on its own,”writes Jimmy Stump in an article on the Smithsonian website.
Stump is not the only one who considers this flying pigeon to be the progenitor of drones. The modern drone of 1993, created by the aeronautics department of the American Naval Institute, was named Archytas in honor of the ancient inventor.
The ancient Roman writer Aulus Helius wrote that the automaton was set in motion by steam. Little information has survived about the invention, it is known that the device amazed the citizens of Tarentum, according to educational materials from NASA. NASA describes it as "one of the first devices" to successfully use principles similar to rocket flight."
The bird moved thanks to the steam and was controlled by cables. It could be used as a catapult, says the Stanford Philosophical Encyclopedia:
“Since the ancient siege weapons were named after animals, Archyta's 'dove' was actually a catapult of his own design or a projectile thrown by such a catapult. But subsequent generations mistakenly considered him a mechanical bird … However, there are no ancient sources that would clarify this issue."
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By the way
300 years after Archytas created his bird, the Greek inventor Heron of Alexandria built what is considered the first steam engine, he worked on a similar principle. The fire under the cauldron heated the water, creating steam that passed through two L-shaped pipes on the sides of the sphere, causing the sphere to spin. The device was called eolipil.