Ancient Discoveries (2003)

Season 3: Episode 5

Today, when you have to move a three-ton limestone sarcophagus you just grab a heavy-duty forklift. But what options did ancient engineers have in an age when the only sources of power were humans and animals? What ingenious methods and machines were utilized to move phenomenally heavy objects and to create structures that would put even today’s machines to the test? From the Pharos Lighthouse of Alexandria to the Parthenon on the Acropolis, this episode reveals the ingenuity of the ancient heavy engineers and shows how their machines built and transported some of the most amazing structures in Antiquity.