Baghdad battery for light from Electrolysis..?

[Bishadi]

I tink i figured them out


http://www.world-mysteries.com/sar_11.htm

please i ask for any additional opinions or even the curious ones to do the experiment.

In observing these batteries and what they could have been used for, i tink i gotit.

There were for lights.

Since the tombs were so deep and bringing light down so far was not practical with standard flames (low oxygen down there) and the use of mirrors was impractical after a few corners it seems there is another option.

Now i remember seeing a tomb carving showing a few jars lined in series and the leads going into a larger vase and light coming from it. (in another a lotus flower type carving showed a beam (maybe light) coming from it)


So after thinking on it and not finding any links or research on how it works, i thought about it for a bit and believe i figured it out.

They were providing basic electrolysis of water in the large vase. By lining up the batteries in series to increase the power they released H and O and to funnel it to a point, could have been ignited to provide continuous lighting.

Any ideas on this from others as it is brand new since the weekend and i have yet to find the same idea on the net.

Sure i can find the idea of electrolysis, the electroplating, the blue sparks, but i have yet to see the light from the H and O released........ and lit to provide light.

Seeking the so called 'peer review'

[Oli]

Maybe you should do a bit more checking before you start speculating...
How much power did they actually produce?

[Nasor]

No one even knows if it was a battery or not, let alone what it might have been used for.

[spidergoat]

It's easier to make hydrogen from a reaction between an acid and iron.

[Bishadi]

It's easier to make hydrogen from a reaction between an acid and iron.

but with water, the oxygen is provided to burn the fuel

[spidergoat]

My idea was that it was a party trick, like the early days of electricity. Maybe people got together and entertained each other with mild electric shocks. Or maybe it was a kind of torture device.

Tombs that don't have good air wouldn't support human life in the first place. If you can breathe, you can burn something.

[Nasor]

Not to be a downer, but...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baghdad...ctrical_device

There are many difficulties with the interpretation of these artifacts as galvanic cells:

* the bitumen completely covers the copper cylinder, electrically insulating it, so no current can be drawn without modifying the design;
* there are not any wires or conductors with them;
* no widely accepted electrical equipment is associated with them. (Controversial stone reliefs depicting arc lights have been suggested, however the voltages obtained are orders of magnitude below what would be needed to produce arc lighting);
* a bitumen seal, being thermoplastic, is excellent for forming a hermetic seal for long term storage. It would be extremely inconvenient however for a galvanic cell, which would require frequent topping up of the electrolyte (if they were intended for extended use).

Some observe that the artifacts strongly resemble another type of object with a known purpose – namely, storage vessels for sacred scrolls from nearby Seleucia on the Tigris. Those vessels do not have the outermost clay jar, but are otherwise almost identical. Since it is claimed these vessels were exposed to the elements, it would not be at all surprising if any papyrus or parchment inside had completely rotted away, perhaps leaving a trace of slightly acidic organic residue.

[Trippy]

Nasor: I was going to make the same point - that the Dead Sea Scrolls (well, some of them at least I think) had been found in contraptions similar to the Baghdad 'Batteries' so they may not have been galvanic cells at all.

The most acidic things they had at that time (to my knowledge) were vinegar and grape juice, which won't produce a very substantial current at all.

[CheskiChips]

What about the embalming fluids they used?

Formaldehyde, methanol, ethanol right?

[GxDESTROYxR]

i have a query regarding the “storage vessels for sacred scrolls from nearby Seleucia on the Tigris” that was mentioned. were these vessels made of the same materials as found in the “Baghdad Battery”? ie. iron rod encompassed by a copper cylinder?

i have tried web searching it but have found nothing. i assume they were as it is stated that they are virtually identically with the outer jar being the main difference however i would like explicit confirmation of this.

thanks