Machines de Théatres (Theatrical Machinery), pl. XV, vol. 10 from Encyclopédie, ou, arts et des métiers (Encyclopedia, or a Systematic Dictionary of the Sciences, Arts, and Crafts)
date: label: Date
content: 1772
name: label: Publisher
content: Denis Diderot, French, 1713–1784
label: Designer
content: Robert Bénard, French, 1734–1772
label: After
content: Radel, German, active 1760 – 1770
notes: label: Catalogue Status
content: Research in Progress
label: Description
content: Design for theatrical machinery to create moving clouds as part of a theatrical stage design. At upper left, a set design detail featuring an architectural square with clouded sky. At upper right, another stage detail showing the figure of Medea advancing her chariot through the sky. Primary apparatus has a rectangular base with a triangular top, similar in shape to a basic house. Six clouds hanging across the width of the space at different heights are attached by wires to a large cog wheel at upper center whose movements control the heights of the clouds. A conical shaped device at lower center made up of multiple cylinders points toward the leftmost cloud, possibly suggesting controlled air that could make the clouds sway from left to right. Figure numbers and letters noted throughout, a scale and inscriptions below.
place: label: made in
content: France
setName: label: See more items in
content: Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum Collection
label: See more items in
content: Drawings, Prints, and Graphic Design Department
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Richard B. Freund
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum
identifier: label: Accession Number
content: 1977-86-34
objectType: label: Type
content: theater
label: Object Name
content: Print
label: Type
content: Print
objectRights: label: Restrictions & Rights
content: CC0
physicalDescription: label: Medium
content: Engraving on paper
label: Dimensions
content: H x W: 39.1 × 47.2 cm (15 3/8 × 18 9/16 in.)
label: Dimensions
content: Mat: 55.9 × 71.1 cm (22 × 28 in.)