Points of Interest is an ongoing series of web discoveries by Guild members.
Barry Wilkinson send this note and, although not wood turning, a very cool video find.
“Have a look at this doll, over 200 years old and can dip a pen in an ink well and write, a masterpiece, well before its time
Some of the engineers in our guild might appreciate this.” http://www.chonday.com/Videos/the-writer-automaton
– Barry
Or you can take a look at the BBC’s YouTube channel here:
http://youtu.be/bY_wfKVjuJM
The Writer Automaton, Switzerland
A 240 year old doll that can write, a clockwork creation by Pierre Jaquet-Droz, a Swiss watchmaker. The doll is able to write any custom text up to 40 letters long, and it uses a goose feather to write, which he inks from time to time, including a shake of the wrist to prevent ink from spilling. His eyes follow the text being written, and the head moves when he takes some ink. You can view this doll in person at the Musée d’Art et d’Histoire of Neuchâtel, in Switzerland.