Accession No

4517

Brief Description

Wheatstone wave machine, demonstration device, English, c. 1850

Origin

England

Maker

Class

physics; demonstration

Earliest Date

1850

Latest Date

1850

Inscription Date

Material

wood (at least two types); metal (brass); paper

Dimensions

length 1080mm; breadth 153mm; height 134mm

Special Collection

Provenance

Purchased on 11/11/1995.

Inscription

Description Notes

Wheatstone’s ‘other’ wave machine, c. 1850.

Rectangular wooden box with slit along the front section which reveals part of a paper-covered cylinder set inside the box. The paper is coloured in black and white, so that when the cylinder is rotated by means of a brass and wood crank handle at the right hand end, the visible part demonstrates the motion of a longitudinal wave. The box is marked at intervals along the top of the slit with the alternating letters ‘N’ and ‘V’. Two grooves in the lid and base of the box at the front allow the introduction of two alternative pieces of wood (one much longer than the other) to restrict the section of the wave pattern which is visible.

Condition good; complete.

References

Chris Haley; 'Wave theory'; Explore Whipple Collections online article; Whipple Museum of the History of Science; University of Cambridge; 2008: https://www.whipplemuseum.cam.ac.uk/explore-whipple-collections/models/wave-machines/wave-theory

Events