Harvard Collection of Historical Scientific Instruments

Harvard’s Collection of Historical Scientific Instruments is a major university museum collection devoted to the material history of science, with about 20,000 objects and roots in efforts begun in 1948 to save obsolete equipment from being dismantled. Displayed chiefly in the Harvard Science Center in Cambridge, it spans scientific teaching tools and research machinery from the 18th century to the modern era. Its holdings include instruments acquired around 1765 after a fire destroyed Harvard Hall and the university library, a geometrical compass designed by Galileo Galilei, extensive sundials, the Harvard Mark I computer, and the control console from the former Harvard Cyclotron Laboratory.

Cambridge, Massachusetts · United States