The Parthian Empire controlled the Middle East and Central Europe from 247 BC to 224 AD. They were sophisticated people ahead of their time in terms of military technology and sculpture, and may have made an ancient battery.
Early Speculation Regarding the Ancient Battery
In the 1930s, an artist from the National Museum of Iraq found an artifact dating from the Parthian era. This was a ceramic jar fourteen centimeters high, and a copper tube with an iron rod inside insulated with bitumen. This has been the subject of speculation ever since.
At the time, Wilhelm König wondered whether the artifact might have been a galvanic cell. Or an ancient battery along the lines of Luigi Galvani’s discovery in 1780. Perhaps, he thought, the Parthians might have used it for electroplating gold on silver objects.
Other scientists disagreed. They pointed out there was no evidence of electroplating back then. Moreover, a vinegar, lemon, or grape juice electrolyte would have produced a current too feeble to do the job. They thought its purpose might have related to pain-reducing electrotherapy.
After the Second World War another scientist produced electric current using a replica of the Baghdad battery. The ceramic jar, and copper and iron electrodes were similar, and he used grape juice as the electrolyte.
The More Likely Purpose of the ‘Ancient Battery’
We hate to prick the bubble, but unfortunately that is the end of the intrigue. While Discovery Channel did squeeze four volts from another replica in 1974 and electroplate a small token, the design was not potent enough to be of much use.
Modern day thinking is there was once a parchment rolled around the iron rod. This was fitted into the copper tube with a bitumen seal. In the course of 2,000 years the bitumen dried and cracked, and the parchment rotted. This leaves the shadow of an enigma. Was Luigi Galvani the father of the battery? Or was there an ancient battery expert long forgotten, before him?
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Luigi Aloisio Galvani (1737-1798)
