Tom Haney's "Birdhouse Builders" automaton going to auction Saturday, Nov. 12, 2016

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Just giving you notice that the auction of Tom Haney's piece titled Birdhouse Builders will happen this Saturday, November 12th at 10:00am. You can bid anytime up until then.

Here is where you can see and bid on Birdhouse Builders.

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Hand-cranked paper bellows bird call project by Rob Ives

Here's another great mechanical paper design by Rob Ives called the "Twitterer Type 3". This one really sounds like a tweeting bird!

From the project page:

In the previous blog post I showed a design for a crank driven bellows to be used at the heart of a bird box project. I have taken that basic design and made it more sturdy. I liked the way the bellows in the previous model were completely visible so I've fitted the crank to the inside of a box but kept the bellows on a pair of slide rails outside the box. You can see the result in animated action on Instagram by clicking the picture to the left.

If you are a Member of Rob's site, you can download the parts to make this project. An annual membership to Rob's site, which provides access to LOT of amazing paper projects, is $14.95 per year. Here is where you can see the step-by-step instructions for the Twitterer Type 3.

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A Moment of Silence - automaton by Al Conquergood

Check out this automaton by artist Alan Conquergood‎. In the scene, a woman is about to take the head off of a chicken, presumably for a meal. All around, a flock of chickens peck away at the ground happily. The woman carefully aligns the axe, then brings it down suddenly. The chicken's head has vanished and the others suddenly notice that something has happened. The black rooster turns in the direction of the incident. Thankfully, once the deed is done, the chicken's head soon reappears and the chickens resume eating.

See more automata by Alan Conquergood on his web site.

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Wooden kinetic sculpture that simulates the motion of a hummingbird in flight

Derek Hugger recent wrote to let us know about his latest creation.

Derek Hugger writes:

Thought I'd share my latest and greatest with you. Colibri is a wooden kinetic sculpture that simulates the motion of a hummingbird in flight. Every element of motion has been completely mechanized, from the beating wings to the flaring tail. Intricate systems of linkages and cams bring the sculpture to life with a continuous flow of meticulously timed articulations. As each mechanism has been linked to the next, Colibri cycles through its complete range of motions by the simple turn of a crank. This project took me roughly 700 hours and contains about 400 parts.

Amazing work. Just amazing.

Woodworking plans for this project are available are here: www.derekhugger.com/colibri.html

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Animated flip book movie made with watercolor and clock parts

Check out this lovely animated/kinetic work by Juan Fontanive.

From the video description:

Juan Fontanive creates machines that combine moving images with clockwork mechanisms. His hand-made screens and metal structures are deeply influenced by the moving image — from shutters and reels to illusory flickering. Responding to the lack of movement found in our current electronics age, he is interested in actual movement in relation to virtual. His machines long to free images; they combine to form a medium in themselves exploring the vividness of living things.

Here is where you can see more animated art Juan Fontanive.

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Beautiful miniature musical automata to be sold at Sotheby's in June

Here is a beautifully produced video showing three miniature musical automata to be sold at Sotheby's upcoming sale. The three pieces represent a sampling of a larger collection that was amassed over five decades. They report that the collection has not seen since the late 1970s. Among those shown, two of the automata are by the famous automaton-maker, Jaquet-Droz who is known for creating the three large, complex automata known as The Writer, The Draftsman, and The Musician.

Here is where you can get more information about Sotheby's sale of musical automata on June 11th in New York.

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Origami cranes perform synchronized dance routine with the help of magnets

I love this ingenious combination of traditional paper origami, magnets, puppetry, and programmed electronics. The flock of dancing cranes is the creation of Japanese designer Ugoita T. The result is a whimsical whole that is more than the sum of the parts. I think there are a lot of other interesting things he could do with this concept.

Feeling inspired? Here is where you can get all kinds of Origami paper, kits, and instruction books. While your are at it, maybe you'll want some small strong magnets!

Via the Colossal blog

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BIRDSONG, with found feather -- a mechanical sculpture by Martin Smith

Check out BIRDSONG, with found feather, the latest mechanical sculpture by Martin Smith. Wonderful!

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Bird wing motion study created with nothing more than tongue depressors and paper

Check out this awesome kinetic model of bird wings. The model was created by design student Joyce Lin and is made of nothing more than tongue depressors, paper, and tape. Amazing!

Via Laughing Squid.

[ Thanks Cameron! ]

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Moving Paper Crow kit by Bliss Kolb

If you haven't seen the wonderful bird automata created by Bliss Kolb, you've been missing out. The artist has now released a kinetic paper kit, which also features a bird.

Once you purchase the Moving Paper Crow, you will then cut out the pieces and put it together using thumbtacks, white glue, and a pin. That's it! When it has been assembled, push down on the lever to see the crow stand up, raise its head, and opens its beak. The package includes all the necessary patterns and instructions. (You supply the tacks, glue, and pin.)

Here is where you can get the Moving Paper Crow kit by Bliss Kolb

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Swans Nesting automaton by Karen Barkie

Check out this nicely made automaton by Karen Barkie featuring two swans. I love the clean construction and the clever, yet simple way she incorporated a hand-cranked music box.

From the video description: A wooden automaton. Male Mute swan swims protectively around a nesting female to the music of Fur Elise played on a small music box. The wooden circular top spins around the stationary female. This is accomplished by inserting a 1/2" dowel within a 1 1/4" dowel. Made of oak, poplar and basswood. Measures 13 1/2" tall and 8" deep and wide. By Karen Barkie.

Here is where you can see more videos of automata by Karen Barkie.

[ Thanks Christoph! ]

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Incredible life-sized peacock automaton by James Cox created in 1777

The folks over at the amazing Atlas Obscura blog did a great round-up of animal themed automata the other day. Among them was this life size peacock automaton created in 1777 by James Cox. The automaton is The State Hermitage Museum, Saint Petersburg, Russia.

From the video description:

Peacock clock at the State Hermitage Museum in Russia. Made in the 18th century by James Cox, an English clock maker, and sold to Potemkin (a favorite of the Catherine the Great) as spare parts. It took 9 years for a Russian mechanic named Ivan Kulibin to put it together again. Well worth it. It is run only once a year during June to preserve the mechanism, so you have very few chance to see it work. Made of gilded bronze silver and glass, it measures 3 meters in height. The dial of the clock is embedded into the head of a mushroom with a dragonfly moving on top to indicate the time.

Here is the full article at Atlas Obsura titled Five Astounding Animal Automata.

[ Thanks Falk! ]

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The world's biggest cuckoo clock in Triberg, Germany

The World Biggest Cuckoo Clock is located in its own house in Triberg, Germany. The construction of the clock was based on 100 year old cuckoo clock, but at a scale of 60 to 1! The cuckoo bird itself measures nearly 14 feet long, and weights an incredible 330 pounds.

Here is a short presentation about the clock and its construction presented by an animatronic clock-seller:

Here is a video of the cuckoo emerging. Clearly the bird isn't entirely traditional and possesses its own animatronic components. As grand as this is, I would have preferred a simple, traditional cuckoo bird.

Here is where you can learn more about the world's biggest cuckoo clock.

[ Thanks Falk! ]

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Incredible mechanical bird wing with individual feathers folds and flaps

Check out this amazing bird wing design by that talented Bliss Kolb. Kolb has a real knack for creating beautiful and lifelike bird automata as you can see here and here and here. His aptitude is demonstrated once again in this masterful recreation of a bird wing which can both fold and unfold as wall as flap.

The wing is a work in progress, the final result to be a crank-operated automaton duck.

From the artist's web site:

The feathers are made from Kozo rice paper. I had to add an additional primary feather to the first section to fill out the spacing.

It was a challenge to get the feathers to open & close smoothly without binding or hitting each other. Each one had to be cut to avoid obstacles yet remain large enough to operate smoothly and look right.

Turns out the wider the feathers are, the easier they work.

See more automata by Bliss Kolb at blisskolbautomata.com

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One woodworker's version of my 'Unwelcome Dinner Guest' automaton made from plans

Theresa Grammer came upon the plans I created for a wood automaton, called The Unwelcome Dinner Guest. This automaton was created to be a wooden mechanical project that was featured in Gizmos & Gadgets, a special edition magazine from the publishers of Scroll Saw Woodworking & Crafts. The article shows the process of making this automaton from start to finish.

From Theresa's email:

I wanted something a bit more complicated and was thrilled to find your blog jam packed with information and a link to plans for your "Unwelcome Dinner Guest"! The plans are very detailed and I was able to build the automata without difficulty. This was fun!

Her version can be seen in the YouTube video above. She also has a short article about the project on the Lumberjocks website. I like the way she used different types of woods and really made her dog unique. Her success has inspired her to work on creating an automaton design of her own.

The original automaton I created for the magazine article is for sale! Here is a page with details about The Unwelcome Dinner Guest automaton by Dug North. Please contact me or use the Paypal button on the page to order the piece online and pay with the credit card of your choice. This is the original signed piece. It comes with a copy of the magazine in which it was featured, also signed by Dug North.

Here is where you can purchase The Unwelcome Dinner Guest automaton by Dug North.

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Pneumantic chirping birds automaton by the ancient Greeks

The design of this piece is usually attributed to Hero of Alexandria, though the web site from which this comes attributes it to another great inventor form antiquity, Philo of

About the owl and bird automaton:

For the operation of the automaton, water from a spring was driven inside the upper airtight container forcing the air to leave through a pipe. Because the pipe-flute led to water, the oscillating wavelength produced a chirp with notes of different frequency. Then when the water level exceeded the curved siphon of the container, it emptied through it to the intermediate container, diverting a yoke to the side. This forced the built-in rotating shaft supporting the owl to turn towards the birds that then stopped chirping. When the water level exceeded the axial siphon of the intermediate container, it emptied through to the lower container, diverting the yoke towards its counterweight, which caused the owl to turn away from the birds that then began to sing again, etc.

This is quite a beautiful reproduction!

See more great inventions on this site about ancient Greek technology.

[ Thanks again, Thomas!]

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Jaquet Droz makes the world's first singing bird wrist watch!

Did you see the exquisite automaton wrist watch by Jaquet Droz I posted about back in December of 2012? If not, here is where you can check out the watch. The company has done it again as you can see from the video shown above of a different bird automaton watch. Called The Charming Bird, it is the world's first singing bird automata wristwatch.

Here is a short interview with Marc A. Hayek, President and CEO of Jaquet Droz. In the video, we see a new large automaton the company has built in order to promote some of the very small ones they are putting into watches.

Jaquet Droz is a name long associated with automata and it's nice to see the company continuing to honor this history.

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The Cuckooland Musuem features over 600 Black Forest cuckoo clocks

This wonderful photograph is of Roman Piekarski, who runs the Cuckooland Museum in Cheshire, England. He and his brother have assembled a collection of Black Forest cuckoo clocks -- many of which are rare and notable examples. They recently had the daunting task of changing the time on more than 600 cuckoo clocks with the spring time change.

The Cuckooland Museum features one of the largest collections of its kind in the world. You can learn more at ww.cuckoolanduk.net

Here is where you can read a recent article about the Cuckooland Museum from The Mail Online.

If you find that you like this sort of thing (as I do), you'll want to put this book on your reading list. It's titled Rare and Unusual Black Forest Clocks, written by Justin J. Miller. It's a beautiful book featuring clocks from Germany's Black Forest region. It includes 700 images of fine examples of clocks made in this region. It is a very comprehensive treatment of the subject.

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Antique tin toy depicts a boy feeding a dinosaur-sized chicken

Here's an antique tin toy currently for sale on eBay. The toy depicts a boy feeding a chicken -- a very big chicken. The actual toy is 7" long and 4" high. If we were to scale the boy up to anything like that of a real human, the chicken would be the size of a Velociraptor (actually, more like its larger cousin, Deinonychus).

Just to show I've done my (frivolous) homework, the image below should prove the point. Bear in mind that the human in the image is supposed to be a full-grown male.

Despite the dubious scale, it's still a wonderful toy. Made in prior to the WWI in Japan, the toy was meant to compete with the famous German toy manufacturer, Lehmann. As you can see in the video, when set running, the chicken pecks at the bird pan as if feeding. According to the description, the toy's mechanism utilizes a verge escapement. It certainly appears to be using an escapement to measure out the pace of the action, but the picture of the bottom of the toy doesn't quite show the mechanism in question.

The toy is in beautiful shape for its age. Tin toys took a lot of abuse. Just imagine how many times this has been used in the last 100 years! Here is where you can get all the details or bid on this antique Japanese tin toy of a boy feeding a chicken.

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Exquisite Jaquet Droz watch features a complex bird automaton

First off all, note the name on this watch. Right, that's the same famous Jaquet-Droz often mentioned on this blog in the context of the amazing writing, drawing, and music-playing automata.

This amazing timepiece is what is known as a "minute repeater", meaning that it audibly chimes the hours and minutes on demand. Very hand in the dark and very complicated to pull off mechanically.

You could stop there, and I for one, would be impressed. But that's not all.

The most notable thing about this watch is that it has proper automaton within. Some automaton watches consist of a simple figure moving with the second hand. Not this one. Rather, this incredible watch features two birds tending their young in the nest. The birds move their hands and one spreads its wings. Meanwhile, the hungry chicks reach for their food and a hatchling emerges from an egg. That's a complicated automaton in any context. This is all done on the inside of a watch!

This watch comes in two varieties and can be yours for a price. It is $472,500 for the 18k red-gold version and $493,500 in 18k white gold and diamonds.

You saw it here first.

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