Named in honour of 16th century astronomer Caspar Vopel of Cologne, Germany, our armillary sphere is inspired by an instrument of his which currently resides in the Science Museum in London. Vopel’s design was based on the premise of an earth-centred universe, and depicts the apparent movements of the Sun, Moon, and stars across the sky using interlocking rings which encircle the instrument, each engraved with intricate detail. The armillary sphere was modified in the seventeenth century to teach the theory that the Earth orbits the Sun. Stands 34cm high.
