The Oldest Phone

Have you heard about a communication device that existed over a thousand years ago? The truth is, this ancient “phone” had nothing in common with the modern version.

It consisted of two dried gourds connected by a tightly stretched cord. While it’s unlikely that this device could transmit human speech, it was certainly possible to communicate using a series of taps. If you tapped one empty gourd, the sound would travel along the cord and be amplified by the other gourd, which acted as a kind of resonator.

Remnants of this communication device were discovered in the ruins of an ancient Peruvian palace.