Engraving of Hero of Alexandria Seated with Tools

What it is

This is an engraving held in the Wellcome Collection showing a bearded man seated on a draped platform, holding an open scroll with diagrams of vessels and devices, with measuring tools lying on the floor beside him.

Why it matters

Like other early modern portraits of Hero, this image is not based on any surviving ancient likeness. It instead reflects how later artists and scholars imagined the "ideal" ancient engineer: thoughtful, surrounded by instruments and diagrams.

Images like this helped shape the lasting reputation of Hero as a founding figure of mechanical engineering, long after his actual writings and devices were studied anew in Europe.

Look closer

• What does the setting — curtains, a draped platform, tools on the floor — suggest about how the artist wanted viewers to see Hero?
• Why might an artist include diagrams of vessels and devices in the scroll Hero holds?
• How does this image differ from a modern photograph, and what does that mean for how reliable it is as evidence?