Prokop Diviš - Žamberk, Czech Republic
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vraatja
N 50° 04.954 E 016° 27.850
33U E 604750 N 5548836
Wooden statue of a Czech canon regular, theologian, natural scientist and inventor of one of the first grounded lightning rods - Prokop Diviš (1698–1765) in front of Divis' theatre in his native town Žamberk.
Waymark Code: WM10NV2
Location: Pardubický kraj, Czechia
Date Posted: 06/04/2019
Views: 11
The wooden, over-life size statue of Prokop Diviš was installed in front of the town theater named just after him, i.e. Diviš' theater in 2010. Prokop Divis, a Czech canon regular, theologian, natural scientist and inventor of one of the first grounded lightning rods was born in close village Helvikovice and from 1736 to 1741 he served pastor of a local parish. That is why he is depicted here as a priest wearing a priest robe. The authors of the statue are local woodcarvers Martin and Miloš Petrovi.
Prokop Divis
Vaclav Divisek was born in 1698 in Helvikovice near Zamberk, Bohemia. His early education was at the local Jesuit gymnasium. In 1716 he entered Premonstratensian abbey gymnasium in Louka near Znojmo. After completing his studies, he entered the novitiate there and took the name Prokop. He professed his vows and studied philosophy and theology to prepare for his ordination to the priesthood. He was ordained in 1726 and from 1729 to 1735 he taught philosophy at the abbey school. He was sent by his abbot to the University of Salzburg to study theology and in 1733 he earned a PhD.
From 1736 to 1741 he served pastor of a local parish. In 1741 he became prior of the abbey but later returned to parish work. While working in the parish he was responsible for the management of farms it owned. He became interested in water conduits and electricity on the farm and began a series of successful experiments. Benjamin Franklin invented the first lightning rod in 1752 but it didn't work well because it wasn't grounded. In 1754 Divis invented the first grounded lightning rod.
Sometime before 1750, he invented first electrified musical instrument, known as a Denis d'or. Unfortunately the instrument has disappeared and the papers describing it are not complete. It seems to have been on the order of a clavichord with 790 strings that were not struck. The device had 14 registers, a keyboard and a complex mechanism and it reportedly could imitate a wide range of instruments.
URL of the statue: Not listed
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