Signedon base: RUDOLPH KOENIG A PARIS
Inscribedon fork: UT3 / 512 / RK
on base, on glued paper: 21-8-2
on base, engraved: 23-23
FunctionCommon in acoustical or psychological experiments of sound perception, tuning forks are used to ascertain the variation of sound pitches. A tuning fork resonates at a specific constant pitch when set vibrating by striking it against a surface or with an object (or in this case by electricity). The pitch generated by a particular tuning fork depends on the length of the two prongs, with two nodes near the bend of the usually U-shaped instrument.
Primary SourcesRudolph Koenig, Catalogue des appareils d'acoustique construits par Rudolph Koenig (Paris, 1889), 79.
Related WorksDavid Pantalony, "Rudolph Koenig's Workshop of Sound: Instruments, Theories, and the Debate over Combination Tones," Annals of Science 62 (2005): 57-82.