An Improved Planetarium by John Lodge

"An Improved Planetarium" by John Lodge

C.1780

Engraving

This copperplate engraving is an astronomical print from circa 1788 featuring two distinct models of mechanical solar system simulators, engraved by the British printmaker John Lodge. The upper illustration is titled "An Improved Planetarium, Tellurian and Lunarium," showcasing a geared desktop device designed to track the precise orbits of Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, and Jupiter around a central sun. The lower, larger illustration depicts the famous "Rowleys Orrery," a monumental, dodecahedral mechanical model encased in an ornate wooden base, wrapped with movable coordinate rings and calendar rings labeled for months and signs of the zodiac. Rendered with clean, technical line work and delicate cross-hatching, the print neatly details the handles, gears, and planetary rods that allowed educators to hand-crank the cosmos into motion.

Originally designed by master instrument maker John Rowley in 1712 for Charles Boyle, the 4th Earl of Orrery, this type of mechanism forever changed how Enlightenment-era Europeans conceptualized the universe. John Lodge, an active 18th-century London engraver known for his work in major British periodicals, produced this plate to popularize scientific innovations among general readers and students. This engraving holds immense historical importance because it documents a crucial shift in science education where abstract Newtonian mathematics were transformed into tactile, mechanical visual aids. By making the heliocentric model physically demonstrable, publications like this helped dismantle geocentric biases and fostered widespread public literacy in astronomy across the English-speaking world.

Dimensions: H 15 ½” x 10”W

Condition: Slight rip on bottom right corner