On Floating Bodies

On Floating Bodies (Greek: Περὶ τῶν ἐπιπλεόντων σωμάτων) is a Greek-language work consisting of two books written by Archimedes of Syracuse (287 – c. 212 BC), one of the most important mathematicians, physicists, and engineers of antiquity. On Floating Bodies, which is thought to have been written around 250 BC, survives only partly in Greek, the rest in medieval Latin translation from the Greek. It is the first known work on hydrostatics, of which Archimedes is recognized as the founder.

The purpose of On Floating Bodies was to determine the positions that various solids will assume when floating in a fluid, according to their form and the variation in their specific gravities. It contains the first statement of what is now known as Archimedes' principle.

Archimedes lived in the Greek city-state of Syracuse, Sicily. He is credited with laying the foundations of hydrostatics (which he established in On Floating Bodies), statics and calculating the underlying mathematics of the lever. A leading scientist of classical antiquity, Archimedes also developed elaborate systems of pulleys to move large objects with a minimum of effort. The Archimedes' screw underpins modern hydroengineering, and his machines of war helped to hold back the armies of Rome in the First Punic War. Archimedes opposed the arguments of Aristotle, pointing out that it was impossible to separate mathematics and nature and proved it by converting mathematical theories into practical inventions.

The only known copy of "On Floating Bodies" in Greek comes from the Archimedes Palimpsest.

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