Sam Reilly 20 The Obsidian Chamber by Christopher Cartwright

Author:Christopher Cartwright
Language: eng
Format: mobi
Publisher: Ashton Publishing Group
Published: 2020-01-05T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Twenty-Five

The beam of Sam’s flashlight landed on one pedestal through to the next. His heart pounded in his chest. He’d never seen anything like it. The entire chamber was a treasure trove of engineering feats. There was replica, after replica of unique scientific breakthroughs, each one leading to the next giant step in humanity’s evolutionary development.

The four of them split up, individually searching the chamber.

Along the first three rows of pedestals was a wheelbarrow, pulley system, and rudimentary gearbox, followed by several other rudimentary inventions of ancient engineering.

Sam gave a cursory glance at each one, wondering if they were a tribute to the classical Roman mathematicians, astronomers, engineers, and scientists. Sam walked around, casually taking photos of each one in the process so that they could be examined sometime in the future.

Up ahead, Tom asked, “What in the world is this meant to be?”

Sam moved toward the pedestal and swore. “Wow! It’s an Aeolipile.”

Tom looked incredulous. “An Aeolipile?”

“The name is derived from the Greek word Αἴολος and Latin word pila, which translates to ‘the ball of Aeolus.’ Aeolus being the Greek god of the air and wind,” Sam explained. His eyes swept the unique contraption with curiosity and interest. “It’s a bladeless radial steam turbine, designed to spin when the bucket of water below becomes heated. Torque is produced by steam powerfully driving through as it exits the turbine.”

“Oh, yeah?”

“In short, it works very much like a rocket or jet engine.”

“Well, obviously,” Tom said, his face looking like it was anything but. “How old is it?”

“It was designed somewhere during the 1st or possibly the 2nd century A.D. A man named Hero of Alexandria described the device in Roman Egypt. Many ancient texts give him credit for its invention.”

“What is it doing here?”

“I haven’t a clue. Probably it’s here for the same reason that the rest of these inventions are here. Whoever built the Obsidian Chamber probably wanted to collect replicas of the best engineering feats produced by humankind.”

Tom said, “But I thought you said it was invented somewhere between the 1st and 2nd century A.D.?”

“You’re right. Mount Vesuvius erupted in A.D. 79. Looks like the historians got it wrong when they dated the Aeolipile.”

A little farther along they reached a clay pot, encapsulating a copper cylinder.

Sam picked it up. “Hey, would you look at this?”

Genevieve stepped nearer to examine it. “Seems a little out of place?”

“Really?” Sam asked. “Why do you say so?”

“Well,” she replied, “Everything else here are significant inventions that have forwarded humanity’s progress, but this is just a clay pot. I mean, they must have been invented thousands of years ago.”

Sam smiled, handing a pot to her. “It’s called the Baghdad Battery.”

She arched an eyebrow. “It’s a battery?”

“It’s believed it could have been one, although, admittedly, no one has ever been able to work it out. If it was a battery, what was it used to power?”

Stepping up to it with curiosity, Tom asked, “How was it supposed to work?”

“I don’t know, but I think

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