The Silver Swan: 18th Century Gem Performs For First Time in Three Years
The Silver Swan is one of the world's finest examples of an 18th century moving mechanical device.
Pictured above, it features more than 2,000 moving parts - and last week, it performed for the first time in three years.
The 18th Century gem, which seized up during the coronavirus pandemic, needed complex repairs.
Cumbria Clock Company and Bowes Museum in County Durham restored it after a successful fundraising campaign passed its goal of £19,000.
The museum also received a £146,324 grant from the National Heritage Lottery Fund towards the restoration.
Last week, Crowdfunding supporters were invited to see inside the swan's working mechanisms in a small performance on Thursday.
It was the first time it moved in three years.
The museum said the Silver Swan's daily performances will return in February (2024).
The swan, which is life-sized, is a clockwise-driven device that includes a music box.
It sits in a "stream" made of glass rods and surrounded by silver leaves. Small silver fish can be seen "swimming" in the stream.
A small silver fish may just be seen in the foreground.
When the clockwork is wound, the music box plays and the glass rods rotate giving the illusion of flowing water.
The swan turns its head from side to side and also preens itself.
After a few moments the swan notices the swimming fish and bends down to catch and eat one. The swan's head then returns to the upright position and the performance, which lasts about 32 seconds, is over.
To help preserve the mechanism, the swan was only operated once each day, at 2pm.
The museum was closed during 2020 and 2021 so the daily display did not take place; when the exhibit was being prepared for reopening in May 2021 the clockwork mechanism was found to have seized up and it was withdrawn from display for further conservation.
The mechanism was designed and built by the Low Countries inventor John John Jospeh Merlin (1735–1803) in conjunction with the London inventor James Cox (1723–1800) in 1773.
Pictured above is an old drawing of the Silver Swan at the Paris International Exhibition.
The swan was described in the Cox’s Museum Act as being 3 feet (0.91 m) in diameter and 18 feet (5.49 m) high.
This would seem to indicate that at one time there was more to the swan than remains today as it is no longer that high.
It is said that there was originally a waterfall behind the swan, which was stolen while it was on tour – this could possibly explain the height which is now 'missing'.
It is known that the swan was sold several times and was shown at the Exposition Universelle held in Paris in 1867.
Today, the swan is currently on display at the Bowes Museum.
The Bowes Museum believes that the Swan is their best-known artefact, and it is the basis of the museum's logo.
The American novelist Mark Twain also saw the Silver Swan at the Paris exhibition in 1867 and described it in his book The Innocents Abroad:
‘I watched the Silver Swan, which had a living grace about his movement and a living intelligence in his eyes.
’I watched him swimming about as comfortably and unconcernedly as it he had been born in a morass instead of a jeweller’s shop.
’I watched him seize a silver fish from under the water and hold up his head and go through the customary and elaborate motions of swallowing it…’
The museum has brilliant reviews on TripAdivsor.
One recent visitors said: “Extraordinary place - a treasure house of eclectic objects which I had never heard of before.”
Another person added: “An amazing museum with a wonderful and varied collection that is beautifully and imaginatively displayed.
”Something to appeal to everyone. We spent much longer here that we expected. The staff are welcoming friendly and helpful, parking is easy too.
”The café offers good quality and good value food too.”
You can watch a short video of the moving Swan HERE.
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