One of the world’s first calculators, devised in 1642 by the French polymath Blaise Pascal, was pulled from auction — at least for now.
Less than 24 hours before Christie’s was set to sell La Pascaline for an estimated $2-3.5 million, a Paris court revoked its export license, after advocates lodged an appeal arguing that the device, one of nine extant, is a “national treasure” that should remain in France.
The instrument — which Pascal invented at 19 — was entirely novel in the age of the slide rule, by allowing users to perform calculations “without the need for reasoning,” per Pascal’s sister, Gilberte Périer. A final court decision could take months, Le Monde noted.