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Keyword: polybolos

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  • Lost Ancient Automatic Weapon Fired at Pompeii?

    04/14/2026 8:35:44 PM PDT · by SunkenCiv · 21 replies
    Archaeology Magazine ^ | April 13, 2026 | editors / unattributed
    The polybolos has long been a legendary weapon of Roman military might, both in the sense that it could inflict tremendous damage and that it may never have existed. But archaeologists and engineers from the University of Campania Luigi Vanvitelli and the University of Bologna have identified ancient artillery holes that they believe correspond to shots from the device, according to a Diario AS report.The polybolos, literally "multiple thrower," was a chain-driven freestanding catapult that fired metal-tipped bolts from a magazine in quick-repeating succession, automatically, according to a description by Philo of Byzantium, a Greek engineer living in the third...