couronne des tasses

[Fr. a circle or crown of cups.] Galvanism : A kind of battery, the first improvement on the simple voltaic pile. A series of cups are arranged in a circle, very much as pearls or jewels might be around a crown. Each of these cups is filled with salt-water, dilute sulphuric acid, or other suitable liquid. Immersed in each are two plates, the one of copper or of silver, the other of zinc. The copper or silver of each of the cups is connected with the zinc of the next one. When a wire is led from the silver or copper of the last cup to the zinc of the first one, a voltaic current is formed, through which the electricity pa es. The couronne des IMG:content-1162.png:[blocks in formation]