Ctesibius

Around 270 BC, the Greek inventor Ctesibius becomes famous for a water clock with moving figures on it.

25 Great Moments In Robotics History By Forbes Staff 2006

Hero and Vitruvius speak of a water-organ, invented or made by Ctesibius, of

Little Folks (July 1884) A Magazine for the Young Various

Next I must tell about the machine of Ctesibius, which raises water to a height.

The Ten Books on Architecture Vitruvius Pollio

Hence, Ctesibius, observing that sounds and tones were produced by the contact between the free air and that which was forced from the pipe, made use of this principle in the construction of the first water organs.

The Ten Books on Architecture Vitruvius Pollio

Ctesibius, born at Alexandria, was the son of a barber.

The Ten Books on Architecture Vitruvius Pollio

The rest, which are not subservient to our needs, but to pleasure and amusement, may be found in the commentaries of Ctesibius himself by any who are interested in such refinements.

The Ten Books on Architecture Vitruvius Pollio

Methods of making water clocks have been investigated by the same writers, and first of all by Ctesibius the Alexandrian, who also discovered the natural pressure of the air and pneumatic principles.

The Ten Books on Architecture Vitruvius Pollio

He adds, that Ctesibius used to say that Demosthenes was privately supplied by Callias the Syracusan and some others, with the systems of rhetoric taught by Isocrates and

Stories of Achievement, Volume III (of 6) Orators and Reformers Various 1918

For the first purpose Ctesibius used air-pumps fitted with handles for convenient working.

The Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume 11: New Mexico-Philip 1840-1916 1913

The blowing apparatus designed by Ctesibius consisted of two parts, just as in the modern organ; the first serving to compress the air (the "feeders"); the second, to store the compressed air, the "wind", and keep it at a uniform pressure (the "reservoir").

The Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume 11: New Mexico-Philip 1840-1916 1913