BLOG 21.  “God’s creation and human’s creation.”

The monk automaton and the tea serving automaton share a lot of common features as I wrote on BLOG 17 and 20, but both have also one interesting difference.

The monk automaton is striking his chest with one hand and flourishing a small wooden cross with the other hand. The conservator Todd-san explained me that it expresses the Catholic concept of “mea culpa” or “I am to blame”. Eyes of the monk is actually moving as if gazing someone near him. Todd-san said to me that the monk is saying as if “God is watching you.”

When I visited Todd-san’s workshop, I brought there a replica of the tea serving automaton in Edo period which my friend karakuri specialist Minesaki Sougo-san made. On the table of Todd-san’s workshop, the tea serving automaton was carrying the Japanese tea cup to him with nodding his head like “Nice to meet you Mr. Todd. I am bringing you a hot tea”.

The monk automaton serves God, and the tea serving doll serves human. The monk automaton is strict, and the tea serving automaton is peaceful. The monk automaton serves God and the tea serving automaton serves the human.

At Todd-san’s workshop, I also met Elizabeth King-san who is sculptor and automata researcher. At the time, I took the photo here. Elizabeth and David research the monk automaton for long years and at last, completed the wonderful book “MIRACLSE AND MACHINES a sixteen-century automaton and its Legend” in 2023. The book is definitely worth to read. I also put the photo of the book here.

 BLOG 20.  “Monk automaton and the tea serving automaton.”

Here are two photos. First photo is a monk automaton owned by Smithsonian Institute and displayed at National Museum of American History (NMAH), USA. And second photo is Mr. W. David Todd and I at his workshop of NMAH in 1999. Todd-san was the conservator of the monk automaton at that time and I visited him to learn about it.

The monk automaton seems to be made in the middle of 16th century in Spain or south Germany. This automaton and the Japanese tea serving doll have several points in common. They walk but the feet are dummies and are driven forward by wheels. They both have three wheels and two main wheels of them are not only located on the right and left sides of their bodies, but those wheels on the left side are shaped like gears. Both dolls go a fixed distance and change the direction. We cannot confirm yet whether or not these two dolls have any relation to each other. (ref: JAK p.25-27)