In their time, the ancient Greeks invented some incredible things that are still used today, from central heating to bridges to cranes, but could they have also created the first laptop some 2000 years before modern man did? After seeing a carved tombstone dating back to 100 BC, some think so.
The marble relief stands about 37 inches high and is called "Grave Naiskos of an Enthroned Woman with an Attendant." It shows a woman sitting in an armchair as a young girl stands before her holding open a thin box. A gallery description says the piece depicts the woman whose grave it marked as she peers into a "shallow chest," noting that at the time, tombstones were used to express hope that a loved one was in the afterlife, enjoying the pleasures they loved while alive.
Conspiracy theorists disagree with this interpretation and do not believe it is not "shallow chest" in the piece at all, rather a portable computer. They feel it can't be a box since it is too thin to hold anything, and they point to the holes in the side of it and claim those are actually USB ports. They even wonder if a time traveler brought the invention to the Greeks from the future.
Archeologist Kristina Killgrove gave a more down-to-earth explanation. She explained in Forbes that those holes probably held a wooden object, like a facade to the box, that has since rotted away. She also pointed out that the holes are round and no USB connector has that shape. Killgrove added that Greeks didn't portray items in their art exactly how they looked in real life, so it very well could be a jewelry box illustrated on the relief. It could also be a wax tablet, which has been used in Greek art and does resemble a laptop.
If you're ever in Southern California, you can see the piece in person and decide for yourself what you think is shown in it. It is currently on display at the J. Paul Getty Museum in Malibu. Meanwhile, here are some other historic artworks that seem to show modern day devices.