The living room of a modest two-story home in the Dutch city of Franeker is home to the oldest operational planetarium in the world. The home belonged to Eise Eisinga, a wool merchant from the eighteenth century, who constructed this amazing mechanical solar system model, commonly known as an orrery, to demonstrate to his community how the skies actually functioned.
Since its opening in 1781, the Royal Eise Eisinga Planetarium has attracted visitors from all over the world. It is now both an astronomical museum and a centre for space exploration. Stargazers, amateur astronomers, and mission astronauts have visited the site, which is recognised as a Rijksmonument and a national heritage site in the Netherlands, with the hopes of finding inspiration similar to that of Eisinga.
This planetarium is a mechanical scale model that moves, representing the solar system as it existed at the time. The model, which was designed and constructed by a common guy named Eise Eisinga, a wool producer, is integrated into the south wall and ceiling of the man’s old living room/bedroom. It shows a realistic representation of the locations of the Sun, Moon, Earth, and five other planets (Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn) and is driven by a single pendulum clock. The planets’ distances from one another are scaled, and their rotation around the Sun occurs in real time. One of the first examples of the ceiling and projection planetariums of the 20th and 21st centuries, the model occupies the entire room’s ceiling.
The World’s Oldest Working Planetarium
The Eisinga Planetarium “hangs” from the ceiling. The sun is represented by a golden sphere that is a little bigger than a baseball and falls from the centre of the ceiling. The planets are represented by several other smaller orbs that rest in concentric grooves around the sun. The planets are driven by a pendulum clock and a complex set of mechanical gears that Eisinga created by hand to precisely match the speed at which our solar system’s planets orbit. This indicates that one full rotation of the Earth takes the planet precisely 365 days. Venus takes 224 days, Mars 687 days, Mercury 88 days, and Saturn more over 29 years. These concealed gears are above the ceiling in the attic and out of sight.
In order for the planetarium to fit on Eisinga’s living room ceiling, it was constructed at a scale of 1 millimetre to 1 million kilometres. However, because doing so would make the planets too small to see, they are not to scale. Apart from the fundamental orrery, the model offers details like sunrise and sunset timings, lunar phases, and other celestial events. The model is remains accurate to this day, with the exception of a few small tweaks that must be made every four years to account for the extra day in a leap year.
The Planetarium Room
The focal point of the Eise Eisinga Planetarium is the Planetarium Room. The solar model with the six planets rotating around it still works. As a result, it is the world’s oldest operating planetarium. The Planet Room will provide you with a wealth of knowledge during your visit. It will take roughly fifteen minutes to explain this. The rest of the museum, including the radar, is up to you to explore.
The Permanent Exhibitions
The museum’s rich collection of antique astronomy equipment and Eisinga’s ancient wool combing establishment are among its other permanent features. Astronomy in the modern era is also covered. In the viewing room, documentaries are screened nonstop. Explore the ancient house where Eisinga once resided and virtually peruse his exquisite documents pertaining to mathematics and astronomy! ‘De Ruimte’ [Space], an interactive permanent display, has been accessible to the public since 2016.
The UNESCO Recognition
A historical gem, the Eise Eisinga Planetarium showcases the achievements of earlier astronomy periods and their technical mastery. There are currently thirteen UNESCO World Heritage Sites in the Netherlands, with the planetarium being the latest inclusion. There are twelve sites located within the country and one on Curacao. Each of them presents the intriguing tale of the Netherlands and its people in a different way. Immerse yourself in Dutch history when you visit the UNESCO World Heritage Sites in the Netherlands. You’ll find remarkable locations where you can explore everything there is to know about the evolution of Dutch society, art, and water management.
Eisinga took seven arduous years to complete the planetarium, longer than he had anticipated—six months. In the end, he finished it in 1781. When the Eisinga Planetarium was opened, it drew large crowds of people. King William I was so delighted with the planetarium that he later purchased it for the Dutch state after seeing it in 1818.
Following Eisinga’s death in 1828, his son assumed management of the planetarium. The planetarium was still operated by the Eisinga family until 1922. Since then, curators chosen by the city of Franeker have been in charge of it.
Eisinga was laid to rest in his birthplace of Dronrijp, 7km away, after passing away at the age of 84. Today, a bronze statue honouring this remarkable wool comber stands in the shadow of the home where he was born, gazing eternally upward. It’s a tribute that he would undoubtedly be pleased with.
References:
- UNESCO World Heritage Centre. (n.d.). Eisinga Planetarium in Franeker. https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1683
