Cylinder-type Electrostatic Machine
date: label: date made
content: ca 1785
name: label: maker
content: Adams, Jr., George
notes: label: Description (Brief)
content: People from ancient times knew that rubbing certain materials and then touching something caused a spark. Studying what is called electrostatics laid the groundwork for understanding electricity and magnetism. Natural philosophers, scientists, and instrument makers created many ingenious devices to generate electrostatic charges starting in the 1600s. These machines varied in size and technique but all involved rotary motion to generate a charge, and a means of transferring the charge to a storage device for use.
label: Description (Brief)
content: This electrostatic machine was made by George Adams, Jr., of London and is set on a base that includes a drawer containing various experimental accessories. During the 1750s electrical researchers refined the design of electrostatic machines by replacing earlier spherical globes with a glass cylinder, a design used for many years. This change increased the surface area of the glass in contact with the rubbing pad and improved the efficiency of the generator. The accessories include dischargers, along with a variety of hanging balls and rods that show electrical properties like attraction, repulsion, and strength of charge. Adams took over his father’s business after George Adams, Sr. died in 1772 and in 1784 published an <i>Essay on Electricity with an Essay on Magnetism.</i>
label: Location
content: Currently not on view
setName: label: See more items in
content: Work and Industry: Electricity
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content: Science & Mathematics
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content: Electrostatic Machines
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: from the Burndy Library
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: 2005.0181.17
label: accession number
content: 2005.0181
label: catalog number
content: 2005.0181.17
objectType: label: Object Name
content: electrostatic generator
label: Object Name
content: frictional cylinder electrostatic machine
physicalDescription: label: Physical Description
content: glass (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: leather (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: wood (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: brass (overall material)
label: Measurements
content: overall: 65 cm x 43 cm x 69 cm; 25 9/16 in x 16 15/16 in x 27 3/16 in