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Saw this on “Superweapons of the Ancient World” on TV last night. They built one and tried to capsize a ship, but it didn't look too successful. They look effective, but it can only be used from shore and the ship looks like it has to be fairly close. https://www.math.nyu.edu/~crorres/Archimedes/Claw/illustrations.htmlThis link shows some drawings. What I saw on the show looked mostly like the 1st and 2nd one.Animation here
After viewing the animation, I don't see how the main beam or rope could have withstood the weight of the ship. I'm wondering if it simply altered the buoyancy of the ship rather than pulled it up and out of the water.
The demonstration on the program showed when the claw was raised it would turn the ship on it's side enought to sink.
That looks similar to the device they used in the movie Kindom of Heaven, when the Christians used big hooks and counter weights to pull over siege towers.
I'm thinking that the Claw didn't necessarily lift the ships out of water, but did more of a “rolling” action to force the ships to their sides to take in water. I don't recall the devices used in Kingdom of Heaven but I bet the feeling of the producers was that the Medeivals would have learned and advanced from the Greeks. That said, I recall hearing that the flaming debris used with the siege weapons in that movie were inaccurate…I think only non-flaming rocks would have been used.
