''Syracusia'' ( el, Συρακουσία, ''syrakousía'', literally "of Syracuse") was an

ancient Greek Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic peri ...

ship sometimes claimed to be the largest transport ship of antiquity. She was reportedly too big for any port in Sicily, and thus only sailed once from Syracuse in

Sicily (man) it, Siciliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Ethnicity , demographics1_footnotes = , demographi ...

Alexandria Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandria ...

in the Ptolemaic Kingdom of

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...

, whereupon she was given as a present to

Ptolemy III Euergetes , predecessor = Ptolemy II , successor = Ptolemy IV , nebty = ''ḳn nḏtj-nṯrw jnb-mnḫ-n-tꜢmrj'Qen nedjtinetjeru inebmenekhentamery''The brave one who has protected the gods, a potent wall for The Beloved Land , nebty_hiero ...

. The exact dimension of Syracusia is unknown; Michael Lahanas put it at 55 m long, 14 m wide, and 13 m high.

General characteristics

''Syracusia'' was designed by

Archimedes Archimedes of Syracuse (;; ) was a Greek mathematician, physicist, engineer, astronomer, and inventor from the ancient city of Syracuse in Sicily. Although few details of his life are known, he is regarded as one of the leading scientists ...

and built around 240 BC by Archias of

Corinth Corinth ( ; el, Κόρινθος, Kórinthos, ) is the successor to an ancient city, and is a former municipality in Corinthia, Peloponnese, which is located in south-central Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform, it has been part o ...

on the orders of

Hieron II Hiero II ( el, Ἱέρων Β΄; c. 308 BC – 215 BC) was the Greek tyrant of Syracuse from 275 to 215 BC, and the illegitimate son of a Syracusan noble, Hierocles, who claimed descent from Gelon. He was a former general of Pyrrhus of Epirus and ...

of Syracuse. The historian Moschion of Phaselis said that ''Syracusia'' could carry a cargo of some 1600 to 1800 tons and a capacity of 1,942 passengers. She reputedly bore more than 200 soldiers, as well as a

catapult A catapult is a ballistic device used to launch a projectile a great distance without the aid of gunpowder or other propellants – particularly various types of ancient and medieval siege engines. A catapult uses the sudden release of stored p ...

. She sailed only once to berth in

, where she was later given to Ptolemy (Ptolemaios) III Euergetes of

and renamed ''Alexandreia'' ( el , Αλεξάνδρεια, literally "of

"). A discussion of this ship, as well as the complete text of

Athenaeus Athenaeus of Naucratis (; grc, Ἀθήναιος ὁ Nαυκρατίτης or Nαυκράτιος, ''Athēnaios Naukratitēs'' or ''Naukratios''; la, Athenaeus Naucratita) was a Greek rhetorician and grammarian, flourishing about the end of th ...

(a late 2nd-century Greek writer who quotes a detailed description of ''Syracusia'' from Moschion, an earlier, now lost, writer) is in Casson's ''Ships and Seamanship in the Ancient World''. Of particular interest in the discussion of the construction of the ship is the detailed description of the efforts taken to protect the hull from

biofouling Biofouling or biological fouling is the accumulation of microorganisms, plants, algae, or small animals where it is not wanted on surfaces such as ship and submarine hulls, devices such as water inlets, pipework, grates, ponds, and rivers that ...

, including coating it with

horsehair Horsehair is the long hair growing on the manes and tails of horses. It is used for various purposes, including upholstery, brushes, the bows of musical instruments, a hard-wearing fabric called haircloth, and for horsehair plaster, a wallc ...

and pitch. This may be the first example of proactive

antifouling Biofouling or biological fouling is the accumulation of microorganisms, plants, algae, or small animals where it is not wanted on surfaces such as ship and submarine hulls, devices such as water inlets, pipework, grates, ponds, and rivers that ...

technology (designed to prevent the attachment of fouling organisms, rather than to remove them).

Appearance

Not much is known about the outside appearance of the ship, but Athenaeus describes that the top deck, which was wider than the rest of the ship, was supported by beautifully crafted wooden Atlases instead of simply wooden columns. Additionally, the top deck featured eight towers, equipped with two archers and four fully armed men. On the bow of the ship was a raised platform for fighting, on top of which was a giant catapult. 20 rows of oars would also have been visible from the outside, and possibly a promenade lined with flowers and tents for use by the passengers.

Amenities

In terms of passenger comfort, ''Syracusia'' would be the equivalent of ''Titanic'' compared to other ships of the era.''Superships'' (2007). Ancient Discoveries. The History Channel. Season 3, episode 4. Her innovative design and sheer size allowed for the creation of various recreational spaces aboard, including a garden and an indoor bath room with hot water. The lower levels of the ship were reserved for the crew and the soldiers on board, while the upper levels were for the use of passengers. According to Athenaeus, the ship was beautifully decorated using materials such as

ivory Ivory is a hard, white material from the tusks (traditionally from elephants) and teeth of animals, that consists mainly of dentine, one of the physical structures of teeth and tusks. The chemical structure of the teeth and tusks of mammals is ...

and

marble Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or Dolomite (mineral), dolomite. Marble is typically not Foliation (geology), foliated (layered), although there are exceptions. In geology, the ...

, while all public spaces were floored with mosaics depicting the entire story of the

Iliad The ''Iliad'' (; grc, Ἰλιάς, Iliás, ; "a poem about Ilium") is one of two major ancient Greek epic poems attributed to Homer. It is one of the oldest extant works of literature still widely read by modern audiences. As with the ''Odysse ...

. The ship was also equipped with a

library A library is a collection of materials, books or media that are accessible for use and not just for display purposes. A library provides physical (hard copies) or digital access (soft copies) materials, and may be a physical location or a vir ...

, a drawing room and a

gym A gymnasium, also known as a gym, is an indoor location for athletics. The word is derived from the ancient Greek term " gymnasium". They are commonly found in athletic and fitness centres, and as activity and learning spaces in educational ins ...

nasium for use by the passengers, as well as a small temple dedicated to

Aphrodite Aphrodite ( ; grc-gre, Ἀφροδίτη, Aphrodítē; , , ) is an ancient Greek goddess associated with love, lust, beauty, pleasure, passion, and procreation. She was syncretized with the Roman goddess . Aphrodite's major symbols include ...

Legacy

The eventual fate of ''Syracusia'' is unknown. Ptolemy's son sought to outdo ''Syracusia''. He ordered the construction of a huge warship, the ''

Tessarakonteres ''Tessarakonteres'' ( el, τεσσαρακοντήρης, "forty-rowed"), or simply "forty" was a very large catamaran galley reportedly built in the Hellenistic period by Ptolemy IV Philopator of Egypt. It was described by a number of ancient ...

'': 420 feet long, and bearing more than 4,000 oarsmen and 2,850 soldiers. However, according to

Plutarch Plutarch (; grc-gre, Πλούταρχος, ''Ploútarchos''; ; – after AD 119) was a Greek Middle Platonist philosopher, historian, biographer, essayist, and priest at the Temple of Apollo in Delphi. He is known primarily for his ''P ...

, it was almost immobile. British classical scholar

Armand D'Angour Armand D'Angour (born 23 November 1958) is a British classical scholar and classical musician, Professor of Classics at Oxford University and Fellow and Tutor in Classics at Jesus College, Oxford. His research embraces a wide range of areas acros ...

has argued that the construction of the Syracusia by Archimedes at the behest of Hieron II underlies the more implausible story told by

Vitruvius Vitruvius (; c. 80–70 BC – after c. 15 BC) was a Roman architect and engineer during the 1st century BC, known for his multi-volume work entitled ''De architectura''. He originated the idea that all buildings should have three attribute ...

that Hieron asked Archimedes to assess the metal content of a fabricated gold crown. The latter was said to have led to Archimedes' 'Eureka-moment' (Archimedes' discovery of how to calculate an object's density), but the true 'Eureka-moment' might in this case relate to the principle of buoyancy formulated by Archimedes (and still called the '

Archimedes Principle Archimedes' principle (also spelled Archimedes's principle) states that the upward buoyant force that is exerted on a body immersed in a fluid, whether fully or partially, is equal to the weight of the fluid that the body displaces. Archimedes' ...

').

References

External links

TEDEd: The real story behind Archimedes’ Eureka! (video)
{{authority control Ships of the Hellenistic period Archimedes Ancient Syracuse Ptolemaic Kingdom Ptolemaic Alexandria Troop ships 240 BC