MB&F may not be giving us two turtledoves for Christmas this year, but the Swiss watchmaker has unveiled a limited-edition turtle automaton that hides a singing mechanical bird. Once again, the ...

The three tune musical automaton bird cage clock by Bautte & Moynier (Geneva, 1825-30) (courtesy Sotheby’s) (click to enlarge) The birdcage clock was a relatively late addition to the automata created ...

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In 18th-century Europe, stylish aristocrats taught their pet canaries to sing tunes with a device called a serinette. An automated pipe organ, the serinette repeatedly cranked out the same sequence of ...