Discovery Channel - Superweapons of the Ancient World (2004) Part 1 The Claw

Long before the atomic age, military masters engineered terrifying machines of war that were heralded as the technological wonders of the day. How would these “weapons of mass destruction” of millennia past measure up today? Superweapons of the Ancient World, a three-part documentary puts the theory to the test, as teams of experts are challenged to re-create some of the ancient world's most fearsome weapons and test them in action. With only seven days to do the job and using only materials sourced on location in the ancient kingdom of Morocco, engineers, timber framers and blacksmiths set out to create three of the deadliest weapons in antiquity the claw, the ram and city destroyer. The function of the weapons must be as authentic as possible, but the team is permitted to use modern tools and techniques where necessary.

Produced by Darlow Smithson Productions for Discovery Channel

Part 1 The Claw

According to ancient records, Greek genius Archimedes created a terrifying secret weapon that plucked Roman warships from the sea and smashed them against the rocks. An entire Roman fleet was forced to abandon its assault on Syracuse, Archimedes' home, in 213 BC. Could such a devastating weapon – which became known as the claw – really have existed? To build one today, the team debates what technology was available to Archimedes – surely no wooden crane could really have lifted a 100-ton-plus ship right out of the waves. They determine that Archimedes may have had an even more brilliant idea – after all, he wrote extensively on buoyancy and the theory of pulleys and levers. The team builds a giant boom on a swivelling tower, with a great taloned “claw” to swing out and smash into a replicated Roman galley ship. Can they sink it?

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