Answer to Question #193883 in Geography for max

Question

examine the ideas of greek philosophers on the shape and size of the earth during the classical times

Answer 1

Leucippus (5th century BC) and Democritus (460 BC - 370 BC) believed that the Earth is flat.

Anaximander (610 BC - 546 BC) thought the Earth has a cylindrical shape.

Pythagoras (570 BC - 495 BC) tried to prove that the Earth has the shape of a sphere.

Aristotle (384 BC - 322 BC), based on observations, came to the conclusion that the earth has a spherical shape.

Eratosthenes (276 BC - 194 BC) believed that the earth is in the shape of a sphere, and was the first to calculate the circumference of the earth. The measurements of Eratosthenes were quite precise even according to modern considerations.