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Vitrum Flexile

Introduction

Flexible Glass (AKA Vitrum Flexile) is a legendary lost invetion from the time of the reign of the Roman Emperor Tiberius Caesar (between 14-37 AD).

As recounted by the Isidore of Seville, the craftsman who invented the technique brought a drinking bowl made of flexible glass before Tiberius, who tried to break it, which lead to the bowl denting rather than shattering. The inventor then repaired the bowl easily with a small hammer. After the inventor swore to the Emperor that he alone knew the technique of making this material, Tiberius then had the man beheaded. This was because he feared that the material could have undermined the value of gold and silver.

Tiberius

Tiberius, otherwise known as Tiberius Caesar, was the Roman Emperor between 14 and 37 AD. He was the second Roman Emperor, succeeding Augustus.

During his reign, he chose to strengthen the existing empire by building additional bases, using diplomacy, as well as military threats, and generally refraining from getting drawn into petty squabbles between competing frontier warlords.

He ruled for 22 years and was succeeded by the infamous Caligula.

Alternatives to Vitrum Flexile in today?

Gorilla Glass is a brand of chemically strengthened glass developed and manufactured by Coming, now in its 6th generation. It is designed to be thin, light and damage resistant. It is a Alkali-aluminosilicate sheet glass which is used primarily as cover glass for portable electronic devices such as mobile phones and television screens.

Validity

Is the Vitrum Flexile story true? Well there are some sources from scholars that do confirm that this did happen, however some do not.

The story was, at first related by two comtemporary compilers, Petronius and Pliny the Elder. Pliny apparently did not believe in Vitrum Flexile, he is rumoured to have said that the story is "more frequently told than it is reliable". Eventually the story got to Isidor of Seville, who lived much later on.

It is possible that Vitrum Flexile might just have been resin from trees, which is a natural chain polymer that becomes liquid at around 100 deg C - It is released naturally when tree bark is removed. It can be filtered in a cloth in boiling water and if cast using a thin-wall would be relatively transparent and not prone to fracturing in the same way as glass and would deform as Isidor's account states, which would also make it resistant to breaking.

Conclusion

The above technology and others on the way does show that if the Vitrum Flexile story was 100% true, then there are a lot of questions to answer how that material came to being early on. However, it may not even matter, because we now have the technologies that almost emulate the technology in the story told by Isidor.

Sources

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