Abstract
The invention of the Voltaic pile in March 1800 is often regarded as the final blow to Galvani's theory of animal electricity. But good arguments for an alternative interpretation of the pile as a public demonstration device can be found. It was an amplifier of effects observed and described in 1797 and an essential part of the strategy of multiplying one's witnesses outlined by Shapin and Schaffer. Volta tried to win general recognition of his jurisdiction over metallic electricity. He was conscious of the difference between expert colleagues and the general public: the pile was addressed to the latter category of witnesses.
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