George III's Magdeburg hemispheres
- Made:
- 1761 in Fleet Street
- maker:
- George Adams
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Science Museum Group Collection
© The Board of Trustees of the Science Museum
King's College, London| Enquiries to Science Museum, London
© The Board of Trustees of the Science Museum
Brass Magdeburg hemisphere apparatus on a wooden stand, made by George Adams, Fleet Street, London, 1762.
In the mid-seventeenth century Otto von Guericke used an air pump to remove the air from between two large close-fitting hemispheres. Teams of horses could not separate them. A scaled down version carried out with air pumps became a standard demonstration. If the air was removed from between the hemispheres, a weight of 40 lb was required to separate them. However, if they were placed in a bell jar and the air was removed, they fell apart. These hemispheres were made by George Adams for King George III.
Details
- Category:
- King George III
- Object Number:
- 1929-115
- Materials:
- brass, mahogany (wood) and cork
- Measurements:
-
overall: 320 mm x 185 mm diameter, 1.39 kg
- type:
- demonstration equipment
- copyright:
- Unlinked Name
- credit:
- King's College, London
