Screw (simple machine) of the last of the simple machines to be invented. It first appeared in ancient Greece and Egypt, and by the first century BC was used in the form of the screw press and the Archimedes' screw, but when it was invented is unknown. Greek philosopher Archytas of Tarrentum (428 – 347 BC) was said by the Greeks to have invented the screw. Although the Greek philosopher Archimedes is credited by the Greeks with inventing the Archimedes screw water pump around 234 BC. records indicate it was first used in ancient Egypt. Archimedes was first to study the screw as
SS Archimedes fitted with Smith's patented propeller, "Princess Royal", was built in the north of England, and in 1842, several more screw-propelled vessels were built or launched in Britain, including "Bedlington", built at South Shields, "Bee", launched at Chatham, and the largest ship built to that date in Ireland, "Great Northern", launched at Derry. From this point, screw-propelled merchant ships grew rapidly in number. By the time the Cunard Line built the paddle steamer "Persia" for transatlantic service in 1856, the paddlewheel was already becoming an anachronism. Though Smith's "Archimedes" had played an important role in the introduction of screw propulsion, Smith