Polyidus of Thessaly

Polyidus of Thessaly (also Polyides, Polydus; Ancient Greek: Πολύειδος ὁ Θεσσαλός, Polúeidos ho Thessalós, English translation: "much beauty", from polus, "many, much" and eidos, "form, appearance, beauty") was an ancient Greek military engineer of Philip, who made improvements in the covered battering-ram (testudo arietaria, poliorceticus krios) during Philip's siege of Byzantium in 340 BC. His students were Diades of Pella and Charias, who served in the campaigns of Alexander the Great. Polyidus was the inventor of Helepolis.^[1]

References

1. Campbell, p. 4. "On campaign, Phillip was accompanied by engineers, one of whom, Polyidus of Thessaly, allegedly developed different types of battering ram. The same engineer was also remembered as the builder of a giant siege tower (helepolis) at Byzantium during Philip's siege of 340 BC. Alexander routinely utilised siege machinery, and several of his engineers are also known by name, emphasising, the esteem in which they were held. Indeed, a pupil of Polyidus, named Diades, was known as 'the man who took Tyre with Alexander' in 332 BC."

Sources

• Vitruvius. x. 19. s. 13. §3.
• Campbell, Duncan B. Greek and Roman Siege Machinery 399 BC-AD 363. Osprey Publishing, 2003. ISBN 1-84176-605-4