On the Galvanic Batteries in the Late Edo Period -Especially on Shozan SakumA's Batteries—

Abstract

Recently some considerations on batteries of Shozan Sakuma (1811-1864) have been given by several scholors, but there is still posibility of further study on this subject. The aim of this paper is to investigate the following matters : Firstly, we clarify what kind of battery was one described in Sakuma's letter, and secondly we investigate what Dutch literature Sakuma made his existing battery based on. Finally, we survey Japanese books published before 1858 in which batteries were described and make a comparative study of Sakuma's battery, in order to know how batteries had been spread in Japan at that time