Daedalus ended up in Crete because he was exiled from his native Athens for killing his young nephew, who he was afraid might someday outshine him. Then he was imprisoned again because he helped Theseus escape from the labyrinth, although he did manage to escape but not without a great loss. While he was resourceful and creative, often outwitting those more powerful than he was, he was also dangerously proud, creating the very circumstances of his quandaries. Greek mythology is filled with wonderfully complex characters, who reveal many different sides of themselves, and Daedalus was no exception. One year the Greek hero Theseus was sent to Crete as part of the tribute and, aided by Daedalus and the King’s daughter, Ariadne, he was able to kill the beast and then find his way out with the help of a ball of string that Ariadne had gotten from the master builder. They were, of course, sent into the labyrinth as food for the Minotaur. After losing a battle with Crete, Athens was forced to send seven boys and seven girls every year as tribute to King Minos. Besides making the wings which flew him to freedom (and which lead his son, Icarus, to his death), he was probably most famous for creating the impenetrable labyrinth of Crete, home of the monstrous Minotaur. He was an inventor, an artist, and a sculptor whose sculptures were so perfect that they had to be chained to keep them from running away. He was said to have invented carpentry and it’s tools the saw, ax, augur, glue, and the plumb-line. Daedalus is probably the most well-known architect from mythology – most people have heard of the tale of Daedalus and his doomed son, Icarus. Ptah brought things into being with his thoughts, and “ccording to the priests of Memphis, everything is the work of Ptah's heart and tongue: gods are born, towns are founded, and order is maintained.” (7)Īnother archetypal architect figure is Daedalus (meaning “ingenious,” or “clever”). One of the oldest gods associated with the plumb-bob and plumb-line is Ptah, the Egyptian god creator god his signs were the ankh (life) and the djed (stability). This is a mental creation, however, from a god of the intellect creation by one of the architect gods was a matter of thought, and language. Plumb-bobs and plumb-lines are associated with several creation gods. It was their ‘workhorse’ tool.” (5) The Romans had devices called “groma,” that used the plumb-line’s perfect verticality to plan out their perfectly square towns. They exploited all the possibilities of the bob, using it for astronomy, navigation, surveying, and building. The Egyptians employed plumb tools in their sighting and leveling instruments, and as a way to continue distances vertically. In ancient Egypt “lumb bobs were appreciated for their ability to furnish a true vertical line.

Plumb-lines are among the earliest tools to be used by humans, and, along with simple devices such as water levels, are associated with architect deities, including the Judeo-Christian God, who was sometimes referred to as The Great Architect (4). (2) To plumb something, as in the saying “To Plumb the Depths,” is related to plummet, and also refers to soundings done by sailors investigating the depths of the seas. (1) The word “plummet” is from the Old French word plomet, and refers to soundings taken by using plumb-lines. “Aplomb” was taken directly from French, and literally means “on the plumb-line,” referring to the plumb-line’s perfect verticality. Several words in the English language are derived from the plumb-bob, including aplomb, plummet, and to plumb.

A plumb-line is a building tool made up of a heavy lead weight suspended from a string and was used to determine whether or not a structure is “plumb” (vertical), or to keep instruments centered over survey markers.

Egyptian plumb bob