Biological weapons and pigs against elephants: 5 worst or best ways of warning in ancient times
It is said that in love and war, all the means are good, but when it comes to "black bombs of death" and the exposure of donkeys infected with deadly pathogens, on the enemy, we are not sure that we agree with this statement. Here are the five worst - or the best, depending on your outlook - the types of weapons born in ancient wars, IFLSCIENCE writes. In focus, technology appeared its Telegram channel.
Subscribe not to miss the latest and most intrusive news from the world of science! About 2,000 years ago, resourceful minds found a way to make Scorpions weapons. Clay bombs filled with poisonous spiders were thrown into Roman soldiers who marched under the rule of Emperor Septimia Sever. These bombs caused chaos and hit the vulnerable places, such as faces and eyes, which contributed to the victory of the defenders of the ancient desert city of Hatra.
The soldiers withstood 20 grueling days when Scorpio bombs fell on them. In the end, the defense won, and Sever's army retreated. In the fourteenth century BC. The Hat plague struck the Eastern Mediterranean. Tularemia, bacterial disease, was used as weapons with the help of infected rams and donkeys, which were placed along the trading paths of the enemy. The disease was very contagious, and only a minimal number of bacteria were required for infection.
The combination of accidental and malicious spread of the disease has led to the fact that it has spread far and wide. In order to cause the disease, it is enough to instill or inhale only 10 pathogens of elephants were effective in battle, but their vulnerability to certain sounds, especially for panic pigs, used enemies. This discovery led to the emergence of the famous Pyrriv victory phrase, which means a victory achieved by a great personal price.
According to legend, the body of one of his dead elephants blocked the exit when it was time to leave, and this led the rest of the elephant cavalry into frenzy. The elephants were effective against horse cavalry and came in handy when enemy people were pressed. They could even have thorns with spikes to add an additional element of danger, but live tanks were not devoid of weaknesses - oh no, because then there were battle pigs.
You can imagine the kakophony of sounds that are heard during the ancient battle: the clatter of swords, the cries of killed people. But among all this chaos there was one sound that acted on combat elephants like nothing else: a squeal of a panic pig. The Byzantine Empire used Greek fire in the Marine War. This deadly weapon, the exact composition of which remains a mystery, could flash on the water, causing devastating fires.
The ignition mechanism, which may have included oil or lime, made it difficult to extinguish. In the spooky turn of events, the infected corpses became shells during the war. During the siege of Kafa, the Mongol army catapult with a plague of troupes, inadvertently provoked the spread of bubonic plague in Europe. In addition, decomposing excrement and corpses were used to improve weapons efficiency by various ancient civilizations.
Historical evidence of these terrible but resourceful methods show the ingenuity of mankind, even in the war. Although these strategies were effective at one time, they also had unpredictable consequences, such as the spread of fatal diseases. Looking back, we see a strict reminder of the destructive potential of ancient weapons and its unpredictable impact on society. Earlier, Focus wrote about the eerie mystery of the Himalayas.