Select digitized items from the permanent exhibition.
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Roman glass round bottom vase
- 1 – 200
Translucent green, glass round-bottomed vase with heavy rainbow luster throughout. Base of the vase is round and then attaches to a vertical tube in the center, top of the tube has an ornamental curved design that…
- Subject Glass, Glassware, Roman, Glass blowing and working, Glassware
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Geber Alchymiste Arabe
- Circa 1584
This depiction of 8th-century Arabic polymath Abu Mūsā Jābir ibn Hayyān, westernized by Europeans as "Geber," comes from chapter 33 of the publication Les vrais pourtraits et vies des hommes illustres grecz, latins et…
- Contributor Thevet, André, 1502-1590
- Subject Alchemists, Jābir ibn Ḥayyān, Muslim scholars, Alchemy
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An alchemist and his family
- 1600s
The alchemist sits in a small side chamber, absorbed by his readings, as his family works to prepare a meal in the open kitchen. Household and alchemical materials merge: a distillation apparatus sits on the hearth at…
- Artist Wyck, Thomas, approximately 1616-1677
- Subject Families in art, Alchemy, Alchemy in art, Wyck, Thomas, Alchemists
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The Alchemist
- 1600s
This scene depicts tools and materials used both in alchemy and in art—most notably the large écorché figure placed on the alchemist's table, which was used by artists and students of human anatomy. A human skull,…
- Artist Helmont, Mattheus van
- Subject Urine--Analysis, Alchemists, Metal-work, Alchemy, Alchemy in art
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The Bald-headed Alchemist
- 1600s
A bald alchemist stands at his furnace on the right, stirring the contents of his crucible while reading a small book. His young apprentice stands by, attentively looking to the alchemist for guidance. Books and other…
- After Teniers, David, 1610-1690
- Subject Alchemists, Alchemy, Alchemy in art
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228 items
Atalanta Fugiens
- Atalanta Fleeing
- 1618
First published in 1617, Michael Maier's alchemical emblem book contains a preface on ancient music and the Greek myth of Atalanta and Hippomenes and consists of 50 engraved emblems, each accompanied by a discourse and…
- Author Maier, Michael, 1568?-1622
- Engraver Merian, Matthaeus, 1593-1650
- Printer Galler, Hieronymus
- Publisher Bry, Johann-Theodor de, 1561-1623
- Subject Alchemy, Alchemy--Early works to 1800
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Alchemical master and disciple
- Part of Theatrum Chemicum Britannicum
- 1652 (MDCLII)
This 17th-century engraving is from Thomas Norton's The Ordinall of Alchimy and was made after a 15th-century illuminated manuscript (now preserved in the British Library). Norton, a practicing alchemist, depicts the…
- Author Norton, Thomas, active 1477
- Creator Of Work Ashmole, Elias, 1617-1692
- Engraver Vaughan, Robert, 1597-1663
- Printer Grismond, John
- Subject Alchemy
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3 items
New Experiments Physico-Mechanicall, Touching the Spring of the Air, and its Effects (Made, for the Most Part, in a New Pneumatical Engine)
- 1660
Forty-three experiments are detailed within this work, including the physical and chemical properties of air proving it has weight along with determining that a vacuum restricts the transmission of sound as well as the…
- Author Boyle, Robert, 1627-1691
- Publisher H. Hall, Printer to the University, for T. Robinson
- Subject Air, Boyle's law, Air-pumps, Pneumatics, Vacuum, Air pressure
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Microscopic view of a flea
- 1665
Engraving of a flea from Schem. 34 of the first edition of Robert Hooke's seminal volume, Micrographia : or, Some physiological descriptions of minute bodies made by magnifying glasses. With observations and inquiries…
- Author Hooke, Robert, 1635-1703
- Printer Martyn, J., Allestry, J.
- Subject Scientific illustration, Natural history, Microscopy, Microscopes, Fleas, Insects, Magnifying glasses
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The Shannon Portrait of the Hon. Robert Boyle F. R. S. (1627-1691)
- 1689
Robert Boyle in long curled wig, white neck cravat and sleeves, black coat; seated facing right with head turned three quarters left, looking out; turning page of book with left hand and gesturing toward book with…
- Artist Kerseboom, Johann, -1708
- Subject Boyle, Robert, 1627-1691
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5 items
Arcana Naturae Detecta
- Nature's Mysteries Disclosed
- 1695
In this pioneering work on microscopy, engraved plates detail the physiology of natural history specimens. Known as the "Father of Microbiology," Antoni van Leeuwenhoek (1632-1723) is considered one of the first…
- Artist Verkolje, Jan, 1650-
- Author Leeuwenhoek, Antoni van, 1632-1723
- Engraver Blois, Abraham de, fl 1679-1720, Schaak, J. van
- Publisher Kroonevelt, Henrik van
- Subject Animalcules, Natural history, Microscopy, Microscopes, Microorganisms, Unicellular organisms, Leeuwenhoek, Antoni van, 1632-1723, Physiology, Microbiology
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A Visit to the Doctor
- 1700s
In the center of a large room, a surgeon in a red cap and apron kneels to apply a leech to the foot of his bearded patient. Scenes of bloodletting and leechcraft are common in such images of doctors' surgeries. The…
- Manner Of Teniers, David, 1610-1690
- Subject Alchemy, Alchemy in art, Alchemists, Leeches, Teniers, David, 1610-1690
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Plate II: Pocket microscope
- Part of The Microscope Made Easy
- 1743
Engraved plate depicts the components of a pocket microscope with a mirror or speculum used to project light through the specimen. The parts and functionality are explained in detail in chapter IV, entitled "A new…
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The First Lecture in Experimental Philosophy
- 1748
The full text above and below the image of this print reads, "The First Lecture in Experimental Philosophy. / Engraved for the Universal Magazine, for J. Hinton at the King's Arms in St. Paul's Church-Yard London.…
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2 items
Bleeding bowl
- 1752
Bowls like this one were used to catch the blood released by bleeding. The appearance of blood was a useful diagnostic tool for physicians, who examined it for clues about the body's internal state. This large bowl was…
- Subject Medicine, Bloodletting, Blood, Phlebotomy
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Airship flown by Louis-Bernard Guyton de Morveau
- Dirigeable de Guyton de Morveau et de Vitry
- 1784 (Date attributed to balloon flight)
- 1909 (Date attributed to postcard)
Postcard featuring a hand-drawn illustrated depiction of a flying airship with assorted propulsion mechanisms and a French flag. The illustration depicts a type of airship flown by French chemist and politician…
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24 items
Traité Élémentaire de Chimie
- 1789
This work by Antoine Laurent Lavoisier is widely considered the first of its kind in modern chemical literature. Select digitized content includes front cover, frontismatter, woodcut vignettes, as well as thirteen…
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Hydrophobia
- 1800s
Originally published in Vanity Fair on January 8, 1887, this chromolithograph depicts Louis Pasteur holding two white rabbits.
- Artist Chartran, Théobald, 1849-1907
- Printer Of Plates Vincent Brooks, Day & Son
- Subject Pasteur, Louis, 1822-1895
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Jean Henri van Swinden demonstrating the generation of electricity to the Felix Meritis Society
- 1800s
This engraving shows Dutch mathematician and physicist Jean Henri van Swinden (1746–1823) demonstrating the generation of electricity to the Felix Meritis Society in Amsterdam. The Felix Meritis Society was founded in…
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Mercury thermometer
- 1800s
A: Bulb containing mercury attached to a glass tube of narrow diameter. Thermometer has Celsius scale with 0-100 degree range.
B: Protective cardboard tube for the thermometer (not digitized).
Partial immersion…
- Subject Temperature measurements, Thermometers
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The Alchemist
- 1800s
A bearded man reading a book is standing in a great vaulted interior. A large window illuminates the room with warm daylight, reflecting against the glassware sparsely placed on upper shelves. At right, a long-necked…
- Artist Granet, François-Marius, 1775-1849
- Subject Alchemists, Alchemy, Alchemy in art
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28 items
Elémens de Pyrotechnie
- Elements of Pyrotechnics
- 1811
Written originally as a technical manual, this volume provides an historical account of the art and science of fireworks, with sections on materials, the manufacture of unit fireworks and display pieces, aquatic and…
- Author Ruggieri, Claude-Fortuné
- Subject Balloons, Military fireworks, Fireworks
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15 items
The Story of Ramie From Seed to Finished Garment Book 5
- Circa 1820 – 1870
Volume five of five brocade-bound sets of 60 Chinese watercolor paintings. The watercolors show, in chronological order, the process of producing Ramie cloth, a silk-like fabric, in China during the 1820s. The…
- Artist Studio of Sunqua
- Subject Art, Chinese, Handmade paper, Ramie, Textile crafts, Textile fabrics
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A Design for a General Laboratory
- 1822
This engraving by Alfred William Warren is based on a painting by English watercolor specialist Cornelius Varley. The engraving depicts a design for a general scientific laboratory, with the apparatus numbered.
- After Varley, Cornelius, 1781-1873
- Engraver Warren, A. W. (Alfred William)
- Subject Laboratories
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2 items
Letter from Michael Faraday to James Curtis Booth, August 22, 1835
- 1835-Aug-22
Michael Faraday (1791-1867) solicits help from James Curtis Booth (1810-1888) in securing permission for Friedrich Wohler (1800-1882) to tour a Manchester factory.