History of Science & Technology, Including the Life and Letters of Richard P. Feynman, and Space Exploration
History of Science & Technology, Including the Life and Letters of Richard P. Feynman, and Space Exploration
From the Computing History Collection of Serge Roube, via His Estate
Staubli Freres & Cie
An Early 20th Century Jacquard Loom Punch Card Machine
Lot Closed
December 13, 08:44 PM GMT
Estimate
6,000 - 9,000 USD
Lot Details
Description
STAUBLI FRERES & CIE
Early 20th century machine with keyboard and crank mechanism on left side. 19 x 12 x 11 (H) in. Manufacturer's plate reads: "Staubli Freres et Cie Constructeur / Faverges Haute-Savoie Brevete SGDG" with serial number 16074. Rust and scratches to machine surface and manufacturer's plate. [WITH]: two punched sheets.
AN UNCOMMON ARTIFACT FROM THE HISTORY OF COMPUTING, this early 20th century machine punched holes in cards to store information for a Jacquard loom to read and execute patterns accordingly.
The Jacquard loom used replaceable punched cards to control a sequence of operations, and its invention in 1804 is considered an instrumental development in the history of computing. The ability to change the pattern of the loom's weave simply by switching cards was revolutionary, and proved an important precursor to the development of computer programming. Charles Babbage—often named as the originator of the concept of a digital programmable computer—was familiar with Jacquard's work, and planned to use cards to store programs in his Analytical Engine. Indeed, a large data processing industry using punched-card technology was developed in the first half of the 20th century, with IBM initially dominating this field, and remained in use until the mid 1980s.
Made after 1909 by Stäubli Freres et Cie in their first manufacturing site in Faverges, France, the present card-punch machine encapsulates the mechanical origins of the digital age.