What is the history of DEWs? Interestingly, there have been many descriptions throughout history of devices capable of causing great fires from a distance. One well-known invention is Archimedes’ death ray; however, this has been largely relegated to the realm of myth. Despite this, there is a significant amount of evidence supporting the idea that such technology could have existed in ancient times. Interestingly, there typically isn’t a distinction made between Burning Mirrors and Burning Glasses. So, if these technologies did exist in the past, what else could they have been capable of beyond protecting coastlines from fleets of ships? Could the Ancients have used them to melt stone?