Terrible dramatising writing. Maybe the author would rather write fiction. Dwelling on irrelevant minutiae, personal stories and general incompetence of the Greek government (who'd have thunk it). There are only a few pages left for the poor Antikythera which this book was meant to popularise. ( )

A very well-written exploration of the Antikythera Mechanism, covering its discovery and subsequent research into its origins as well as other early mechanical devices of this type, Greek astronomical thought, and more. Marchant's book will be of great interest to anyone interested in scientific history and research, and I recommend it. ( )

Thsi book is required reading for anyone who thinks our ancestors were dumb barbarians vastly inferior to the sleek, sophisticated version of Homo sapiens doing his level best to wreck the planet today. The 2000 year old Antikythera Mechanism was nothing less than a computer of outstanding sophistication. designed to calculate the positions of heavenly bodies in a number of extraordinarily complex motions. So sophisticated, in fact, that its taken near a century to figure out exactly how it works, and there is still debate about the findings today. A lively, entertaining book, popular science at its best. ( )

This should be essential reading for those in the archaeological profession who seem to be stuck in the 'ritual' motivation rut. ( )

The "Antikythera mechanism" was recovered in 1900 from an ancient ship wrecked off the Greek Island of Antikythera. The ship had been carrying a huge cargo of bronze and marble sculptures which seemed like the big prizes at the time and for decades afterward. But a series of determined researchers - and it took loads of determination - realized the intriguing implications of "a corroded lump of bronze and wood" which had cracked open after several months exposure to dry air "to reveal traces of gearwheels ... along with some faint inscriptions in ancient Greek. It proved to be an extraordinarily sophisticated mechanism for computing the motions of heavenly bodies - the sun, moon and planets. The story of the people who recognized the importance of this object and vied to gain access to it to study its mysteries is as fascinating in its own way as the object itself. Highly recommended for anyone interested in the history of science and astronomy.