17.2007
Air Pump
Artists
Reverend John Prince
(1751 - 1836);
Maker Unidentified
Title
Air Pump
Creation Date
ca. 1783
Century
late 18th century
Object Type
furniture
Creation Place
North America, United States
Medium and Support
mahogany, eastern white pine, brass, glass
Credit Line
Bowdoin College Museum of Art, Brunswick, Maine, College Transfer
Copyright
This artwork may be under copyright. For further information, please consult the Museum’s
Copyright Terms and Conditions.
Accession Number
17.2007
During the Enlightenment, scientific achievement was one avenue by which Americans kept apace internationally. Wealthy amateur scientists commissioned costly instruments, such as this air pump, in order to conduct their own experiments and gain favorable notice of learned British and European societies. Used to demonstrate the properties of pneumatics or vacuum, this air pump arrived at Bowdoin in 1803. One of America’s finest instrument makers, John Prince advanced air pump design with this instrument. As founding president of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1780, James Bowdoin II included Prince’s research of his air pump among the Academy’s first published papers in 1785. Also noteworthy is the pump’s mahogany case with columns, frieze, and pediment creating the conceit of a temple of learning. A costly status symbol, the mahogany was extracted in the British West Indies, Honduras, Jamaica, and Cuba by “white cutters” who supervised indentured and enslaved Indigenous and African workers.
Additional Media
10.2006front.jpg
17.2007.detail.jpg
17.2007.side.jpg
obverse, top half
top half without case
inner workings
internal box
reverse, bottom half, case removed