Ctesibius

He wrote the first treatises on the science of compressed air and its uses in pumps (and even in a kind of cannon).

None of his written work has survived, including his Memorabilia, a compilation of his research that was cited by Athenaeus.

Laërtius details this by recounting the following concerning the philosopher Arcesilaus: When he had gone to visit Ctesibius who was ill, seeing him in great distress from want, he secretly slipped his purse under his pillow; and when Ctesibius found it, "This," said he, "is the amusement of Arcesilaus.

"Ctesibius's work is chronicled by Vitruvius, Athenaeus, Pliny the Elder, and Philo of Byzantium who repeatedly mention him, adding that the first mechanicians such as Ctesibius had the advantage of being under kings who loved fame and supported the arts.

Proclus (the commentator on Euclid) and Hero of Alexandria (the last of the engineers of antiquity) also mention him.

Ctesibius' water clock, as visualized by the 17th-century French architect Claude Perrault
Reconstruction of Ctesibius' hydraulis at the Kotsanas Museum of Ancient Greek Technology , in Athens , Greece .
Hydraulic clock of Ctesibius, reconstruction at the Technological Museum of Thessaloniki
A reconstruction of the counterweight-adjustable mirror of Ctesibius, at the Kotsanas Museum of Ancient Greek Archaeology in Athens , Greece.