Détails

Zeiss Projector Collection

ZPC

Correspondence, invoices and receipts, publications, photographs, slides, postcards, and blueprints documenting the Zeiss planetarium projector at the Adler Planetarium & Astronomy Museum in Chicago. The collection predominantly includes correspondence from the Adler's directors, but also includes publications with information regarding the Zeiss projector.

3 linear feet (5 boxes, including 1 oversized box)

Historical background: The first modern planetarium was designed by Dr. Walther Bauersfeld, the scientific director of the firm of Carl Zeiss in Jena, Germany, in 1923. This new machine projected light onto the inner surface of a dome, effectively creating the illusion of a night sky. \n \n In 1928, Max Adler, a senior officer and stockholder in Sears, Roebuck and Company, decided to invest part of his fortune in a public facility for Chicago. After visiting Germany to view the new Zeiss projector, Adler donated the funds to construct the Adler Planetarium and Astronomical Museum, the first modern planetarium in the Western Hemisphere. The Adler Planetarium opened in 1930 with a Zeiss Model II Projector, and was a major attraction during the Century of Progress Exposition in 1933-1934. The Model II Projector was modified by Zeiss in 1959.\n \n In 1969, the Adler Planetarium sold the Model II Projector to the city of Jackson, Mississippi and upgraded to a Zeiss Model VI Projector. The Model VI was used until November 2010. \n \n In 1997 the Adler Planetarium acquired an additional Zeiss Model VI Projector from Hayden Planetarium to use for spare parts. Adler Planetarium also managed distribution of its parts to other planetaria using Zeiss projectors. In 2010 the planetarium in Rochester, New York accepted all the remaining parts of the Hayden's projector.

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COLLECTION