"The instrument, in private hands since 1942, is one of only eight authentic Pascalines in existence. Christie's described the machines as nothing less than the first attempt in history to substitute the work of a machine for that of the human mind. Pascal developed the instruments, the first attempt to mechanise mental calculation, to simplify the work of his father, who was in charge of a court tasked with restoring order to tax revenue collections in northern France, Christie's said."
"But the auction house withdrew the ebony-inlaid instrument from sale on Wednesday after the Paris administrative court, responding to an urgent appeal by scientists and researchers, provisionally suspended its authorisation for export late on Tuesday. The machine was one of only eight in existence. Photograph: Jean-Philippe Humbert/Christie's Given its historical and scientific value, La Pascaline is likely to be classified as a national treasure' which prevents the issuance of an export certificate, the court said, adding its provisional decision prohibits it from leaving the country."
La Pascaline was developed by Blaise Pascal in 1642 when he was 19 and is one of only eight authentic Pascalines. The ebony-inlaid instrument had been in private hands since 1942 and was expected to fetch more than £2m at a Christie's auction of Leon Parce's library. The Paris administrative court provisionally suspended its export authorisation after an urgent appeal by scientists and researchers and indicated the machine is likely to be classified as a national treasure, preventing export. Christie's suspended the sale pending the court's final ruling, which could take several months.
Read at www.theguardian.com
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]