Magdeburg Hemispheres
Magdeburg Hemispheres
Previous
Next
Usage conditions apply
- Description
- Otto Von Guericke (1602-1686), the scientifically-minded mayor of Magdeburg, demonstrated the effects of a vacuum and of atmospheric pressure by joining one hollow hemisphere with another, evacuating the air between the two, and showing how hard it then was to pull the two apart. In time, Magdeburg hemispheres became popular pieces of scientific apparatus. This unsigned example was used at St. Joseph's College, in Emmitsburg, Md.
- Ref: Benjamin Pike, Jr. Illustrated Descriptive Catalogue of Optical, Mathematical, and Philosophical Instruments (New York, 1856), vol. 1, p. 204
- Location
- Currently not on view
- Object Name
- Magdeburg Hemispheres
- Measurements
- overall: 13 cm x 6.5 cm; 5 1/8 in x 2 9/16 in
- overall: 5 in x 2 9/16 in; 12.7 cm x 6.50875 cm
- ID Number
- PH.325784
- catalog number
- 325784
- accession number
- 257689
- Credit Line
- St. Joseph's College
- See more items in
- Medicine and Science: Physical Sciences
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
Nominate this object for photography.
Our collection database is a work in progress. We may update this record based on further research and review. Learn more about our approach to sharing our collection online.
If you would like to know how you can use content on this page, see the Smithsonian's Terms of Use. If you need to request an image for publication or other use, please visit Rights and Reproductions.
