The Sci-Fi Weapon Used In 212 BCE To Torch an Enemy Fleet

Archimedes’ Death Ray

(Public domain)

In 213 BCE, the Roman Republic laid siege to the prominent city of Syracuse on the island of Sicily. The siege took place during the Second Punic War. During the First Punic War, Rome seized Syracuse and got its first taste of empire. It was a taste that they would not soon forget. In the years since the First Punic War, Syracuse…