Egg of Columbus (mechanical puzzle)
- Egg of Columbus (mechanical puzzle)
The names Egg of Columbus and Columbus Egg have been used for several mechanical toys and puzzles inspired on the legend of Columbus balancing an egg on its end to drive a point. Typically, these puzzles are egg-shaped objects with internal mechanisms that make the egg stand up, once the users discovers the secret.
Mechanisms typically used in such toys include moving weights, mercury flowing in sealed tubes or compartments, and steel balls rolling on grooves and pits.
History
A Columbus Egg puzzle using a rolling ball was described in a 1893 book [cite book | title = Puzzles Old and New | author = "Professor Hoffmann" | place = London | year = 1893 | note = reprinted 1993 (L. E. Hordern, ed.)] . The Montgomery Ward catalog of 1894 includes a "Columbus Egg" toy ][cite article | author = Martin Gardner | title = The great egg-balancing mystery | journal = The Skeptical Inquirer | number = 3 | volume = 20 | month = may-June | year = 1996 [http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m2843/is_n3_v20/ai_18372128] ] . ]There are at least 18 United States patents for such devices, starting from 1891 [.]The German company Pussycat (toy manufacturer) sells a Columbus Egg that can be balanced by holding it upright for 25 seconds, then quickly inverting it. The egg will then stand on its pointed end for 15 seconds, then topple on its side [.]References
ee also
* Egg of Columbus (tangram puzzle)
* Egg of Li Chun
* Superegg
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