Gallery: The Strange Blowpipe 19th Century Miners Used to Analyze Ore

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    Jared Soares/WIRED
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    This blowpipe kit from the Chemical Heritage Foundation Museum in Philadelphia dates to about 1870.
  • A close up of the blowpipe.
    Jared Soares/WIRED
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    A close up of the blowpipe.
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    Jared Soares/WIRED
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    The scale that came with the blowpipe kit could be used to weigh ore samples.
  • The end result of a blowpipe assay is a tiny bead of precious metal that's too small to weigh on the scale. The assayist...
    Jared Soares/WIRED
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    The end result of a blowpipe assay is a tiny bead of precious metal that's too small to weigh on the scale. The assayist would match the bead to lines on this strip and read out the weight with the magnifying glass.
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    Jared Soares/WIRED
    05

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    Another look at the blowpipe kit, with all equipment stowed.
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    Jared Soares/WIRED
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    This mineralogy hobby kit from 1946 includes a simple blowpipe (the slender curved object attached to the lid, near the center), and a variety of mineral samples wrapped in paper.
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