Only a few meters away, in the old building of this museum, Tobias Mayer was born in 1723. He was one of the most famous scientists of his time – his name was mentioned together with Newton and Gauss. As a mathematician, astronomer and cartographer, he solved many pressing scientific questions of the 18th century. Mayer lived in the time of the Enlightenment, a time that was particularly marked by the pursuit of knowledge and recognition. The formula knowledge is power is indicative of this age. The natural sciences experienced an unprecedented boom and gained more and more influence on people’s lives. However, in one area, technical progress was slow: goods traffic reached global proportions for the first time, but it was impossible for seafarers to determin their own position. This led to catastrophic accidents, often even total losses: crew, goods and ship were lost. Because the British Empire as a leading world power especially among these states, the London government announced a million-dollar price for solving the navigational problem. Join us on a journey through the stations of Mayer’s incomparable life and learn how he, from Marbach, became a respected professor and finally a prizewinner.
Further information: