THE AMAZINGLY ROBOTIC SILVER SWAN

Clockwork Robots of Antiquity

The legendary Silver Swan you see above preens, fishes and stuns. It's an automaton that's almost 250 years old.

Amazingly, this robot dates from 1773—and it’s been attracting astonished crowds ever since the first time it was exhibited. Yes, it’s real silver, the product of Belgian inventor John Joseph Merlin who collaborated with London inventor James Cox on the 18th-century marvel.
(Merlin, incidentally, is also responsible for another extraordinary invention: the roller skate.)

The swan usually resides at the Bowes Museum. On its website, the museum explains that the machine gets its graceful motion from three internal clockwork mechanisms.

Inside, glass rods rotate when the automaton is wound. A 40-second show follows: The swan swims in a crystal pool, preens, looks about and as a grand finale sees a fish and “eats” it.
(Spoiler alert) The fish is actually hidden inside of the swan’s mouth, but it comes out to simulate a catch.