Claw of Archimedes Claw of Archimedes The Claw (, "harpágē", "snatcher") of Archimedes (also known as the "iron hand") was an ancient weapon devised by Archimedes to defend the seaward portion of Syracuse's city wall against amphibious assault. Although its exact nature is unclear, the accounts of ancient historians seem to describe it as a sort of crane equipped with a grappling hook that was able to lift an attacking ship partly out of the water, then either cause the ship to capsize or suddenly drop it. These machines featured prominently during the Second Punic War in 214 BC, when the Roman Republic
Tochmaland, Kollum containing an electrically driven Archimedes' screw was erected next to the mill. A proposal to demolish the mill was rejected by the mayor of the gemeente Kollumerland en Nieuwkruisland. 0n 30 December 1948, the mill was purchased by the gemeente. Restorations were undertaken in 1949, 1963 and 1983. since 1995, an electric motor has been installed in "Tochmaland" to drive its Archimedes' screw, and the installation in the brick shed demolished. "Tochmaland" is what the Dutch describe as an "Grondzeiler". It is a two-storey smock mill on a single-storey base. There is no stage, the sails reaching down almost to