Would I be considered one of the crazies if I were to point out that the ye old super geniuses would make discoveries while being funded by patrons, who would then use their status and authority to monopolize information to reinforce their control schema over the peasantry? 
Wouldn't this topic not only show the sophistication of people back then, but also the potential of foresight that they would understand their position over the illiterate masses, and naturally, they would want to guarantee and maintain their lineage's position of security and power over time. Isn't that ultimately the motivation behind an interest in such antiquity, to connect the dots on how it may be relevant today?
