The archipendulum is an ancient ancestor of the spirit level and

astrolabe An astrolabe (; ; ) is an astronomy, astronomical list of astronomical instruments, instrument dating to ancient times. It serves as a star chart and Model#Physical model, physical model of the visible celestial sphere, half-dome of the sky. It ...

, and was used to check whether a line was horizontal or at a desired inclination. It consisted of a handheld A-shaped construction with a plumbline suspended from the top vertex. The horizontal bar of the A was marked at its midpoint, so that the plumbline's coincidence with this point indicated that the bases of the two legs were at the same level. Other gradations on the horizontal bar enabled the user to construct or verify inclined lines. The same methods of use apply to the inverted 'T' which is simply another variant of the archipendulum. Used by the builders of the

Egyptian pyramids The Egyptian pyramids are ancient masonry structures located in Egypt. Most were built as tombs for the pharaohs and their consorts during the Old Kingdom of Egypt, Old and Middle Kingdom of Egypt, Middle Kingdom periods. At least 138 identi ...

and from the Indian subcontinent, it was more recently described by Johann Heinrich Alsted and

Leon Battista Alberti Leon Battista Alberti (; 14 February 1404 – 25 April 1472) was an Italian Renaissance humanist author, artist, architect, poet, Catholic priest, priest, linguistics, linguist, philosopher, and cryptography, cryptographer; he epitomised the natu ...

External links

Building the Pyramids

References

{{reflist Inclinometers