As the reputed fact of Archimedes having burned the Roman ships engaged in the siege of Syracuse, by concentrating on them the solar rays, has not only been doubted but disbelieved by some of the most eminent scientific men, I shall briefly give the evidence on both sides.

The burning of the ships of Marcellus is mentioned by most of the ancient writers who refer to the machines which Archimedes employed in the defence of his native city, and their statements have been repeated by succeeding authors, without any doubts having been expressed until comparatively recent times. Our earliest authorities on the subject are Diodorus Siculus, Lucian, Galen, Dion, and Pappus.