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The Turk : the life and times of the famous eighteenth-century chess-playing machine
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The Turk : the life and times of the famous eighteenth-century chess-playing machine

by Tom Standage

This account examines the history of the Turk, a mechanical chess-playing automaton constructed in 1769. It details the machine's organised exhibitions across Europe and America and its role in early debates concerning the development of artificial intelligence.

Accession 21777 ISBN 0802713912 Publisher Walker and Company
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TAGS
Curated Derived
Economics Engineering Entertainment History Intelligence Invention Science Technology
CONNECTIONS
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State
on_shelf
True
position_updated_at
2026-05-27 11:10
orientation
vertical
Details

Physical

binding_type
Hard Back
dimensions
none captured
spine_text
none captured

Metadata

Book form
LOCATION HISTORY
M:N1:2 5 Current vertical
2 weeks ago
Book Location
Updated 2 weeks ago
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Identity

name→ title
The Turk : the life and times of the famous eighteenth-century chess-playing machine
vernon_id
32111
accession_no→ accession_number
21777
vernon_slug
the-turk-the-life-and-times-of-the-famous-eighteenth-century-chess-playing-machine-tom-standage

Drives Pulse state

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On Shelf
location_name
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location_reason
On Shelf
isbn_issn→ isbn (when valid)
0802713912

Descriptive

production_date
2002
object_type
Books/Document genres/Information forms/Visual and Verbal Communication
object_status
Accessioned
brief_description
On an autumn day in 1769, a Hungarian nobleman named Wolfgang von Kempelen attended a conjuring show at the court of Maria Theresa, empress of Austria-Hungary. So unimpressed was Kempelen by the performance that he declared he could do better himself. Maria Theresa held him to his word and gave him six months to prepare a show of his own. Kempelen did not disappoint; he returned to the court the following spring with a mechanical man, fashioned from wood, powered by clockwork, dressed in a stylish Turkish costume and capable of playing chess.

Subjects & people

authors→ author (initial fill only)
Tom Standage
tags→ tags
Science, Games, Engineering, Technology, Amusements, Industrial engineering, Board games, Chess, Automation, Toys, Tricks
subject_people
Napoleon I, Emperor of the French (b.1769, d.1821), Charles Babbage (b.1791, d.1871), Catherine II Empress of Russia (b.1729, d.1796), Benjamin Franklin (American, b.1706, d.1790)
subject_objects
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Cover image

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