Ancient Greek Nanotechnology ~ ITS REAL!👀

Known as the Lycurgus Cup, this extraordinary relic of the Roman Empire, now housed in the British Museum, has baffled historians and glassmakers for generations. Scientists eventually discovered that its secret lay in tiny particles of gold and silver embedded in the glass. Many measured roughly 50 to 100 nanometers across — far smaller than the width of a human hair. At this scale, metals interact with light in unusual ways. Ordinary white light contains all the colors of the visible spectrum. When light passes through the Lycurgus Cup, the metallic nanoparticles preferentially absorb and scatter shorter wavelengths, including blue and green, allowing more red and orange light to emerge. When light strikes the cup from the front, the particles scatter light differently, making the glass appear opaque green. https://www.zmescience.com/other/art-other/lycurgus-cup-recreating-sheffield-uni/ #History #Historycommunity #Nauknauklounge