Machine for the planets, with planetarium and celestial planisphere Machine for eclipses, with eclipsareon and calendar

These two “astronomical machines,” one showing the movement of the planets in accordance with the system of Nicolaus Copernicus, the other the mechanism of solar and lunar eclipses, gave astronomers a quick way of determining, at any moment within the previous two hundred years, the positions of what were then the six known planets of the solar system, as well as the dates of the eclipses, without the help of tables or calculations. These prestigious objects served as teaching tools in the education of the Dauphin, son of Louis XIV, as indicated by the three dolphins (dauphins) adorning their bases. They were also used for diplomatic purposes: surmounted by a sun with the head of Apollo – emblem of Louis XIV –, copies were offered to the Shah of Persia in 1682, king Phra Naraï of Siam in 1685, and the emperor of China, Kangxi, in 1688.