Fake But True: Model Maker Roberto Guatelli, Science Museums and Replicated Artifacts of Computing History

Science museums have a long tradition in resorting to reproductions, both to preserve original artifacts and to make exhibitions attractive by presenting the material culture of science and technology. The art of making copies of precious objects, sometimes for fakery or forgery, is as old as collecting, but since the 19th century it has become both commonplace and profitable. In this article, the authors reconstruct the life and works of a 20th century model maker, Roberto Guatelli, whose reproductions of technological artifacts of the past, particularly calculators, can be found in several museums.