10 Medieval Inventions So Advanced We Still Can't Beat Them [22:54]

YouTube ^ | August 21, 2025 | Medieval Wisdom

[Deaf Smith]

The Weather Rock did’t earn a place in history?

[Reily]

In my experience Renaissance Fairs have devolved into Dungeons and Dragons Fairs!

[tumblindice]

In 16th-century Italy, Gabriele Falloppio authored the earliest uncontested description of condom use.

[KarlInOhio]

By holding the astrolabe up and citing a star with its ruler, you could determine the star’s altitude.

When I cite that star, am I quoting it in a scholarly paper or am I issuing it a legal summons to appear in court?

When you quote a web page about how to aim a gun you cite a sight site.

[Qwapisking]

Remember friends, “The current generation cannot possibly judge the past generations until the future generations can judge the current generation” L.Star

[GOPJ]

The rich clay heavy soils of northern lands were too tough for ancient tools. The solution was the heavy plow. And it wasn’t just bigger, it was smarter. Three components worked in perfect harmony. The culter, a vertical knife that sliced through the soil like a blade through leather. The plow share cutting horizontally beneath the surface. And the moldboard curved with mathematical precision to flip the heavy earth completely over, burying weeds and exposing fresh soil to air.

This wasn’t just about farming better. The heavy plow unlocked soils that had been useless for millennia. Suddenly, the dense forests and marshy lands of Northern Europe became the bread basket of the continent. Without this tool, there would be no surplus grain, no medieval cathedrals, no universities, no renaissance. The heavy plow didn’t just change agriculture. It made European civilization possible.

I'm not saying it's time travelers. but it's time travelers.... Or maybe with a lack of freedom and funds - the 'best and brightest' of that time sat around thinking ... rather than doing and came up with these wonders.

[SunkenCiv]

Just add “ye olde” to the description and I’m cool.

[SunkenCiv]

George Jetson named his dog Astro, I suspect one of those “if the Jetsons had been set in the Middle Ages” type AI spoofs on YouTube would name that dog Astrolabe. 🐕‍🦺

[SunkenCiv]

It goes back somewhat into BC, Middle East, but really came into its own during the Roman Empire.

[SunkenCiv]

Italian. Figures. 😉

[SunkenCiv]

The “Connections” guy had stuff to say about that. The other major component was the horse collar. Horses have other uses and can’t use the yoke as oxen do. Horses will plow the fields faster, pull carts, and carry riders.

[SunkenCiv]

😁

[SunkenCiv]

Yeah, civilizations with interstellar capability are usually experts in quarrying stone, too. 😜

[SunkenCiv]

“When there’s a plane crash, the news always says the victims were identified by their dental records. But if they don’t know who *you* are, htf do they know who your *dentist* is?” — Robert Schimmel

[Albion Wilde]

BUMP

for later reading of the SunkenCiv magazine!

[HartleyMBaldwin]

There are databases of dental records. Investigators don’t necessarily have to know the dentist’s name to find a match between a victim and a record. In the case of a plane crash, the investigators can start with the list of passengers.

[SunkenCiv]

Here’s a quarter, buy a sense of humor.

[SunkenCiv]

😁 It’s a good issue this week.

[SunkenCiv]

😆

[HartleyMBaldwin]

Keep the quarter and buy the other half a wit for yourself.