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This is an original Konrad Zuse Pluggable Unit for the model Z3 computer dating to 1940s to 1960. Pluggable unit has never been used and is in near mint condition. It was to be a replacement incase production machines needed a replacement. The tube has been under glass with a prominent German collector and after many years, we’ve finally acquired this very rare, seldom found as only a handful of original Zuse tubes can be found. Beginning in the 1930s, Zuse was a German scientist that designed and developed many of the 1st computing hardware logic components long before IBM and other US companies. This Zuse pluggable tube has the very rare and seldom found twin top flip flop lights to show what state a bit of memory was in for diagnostics. Notice the woven cloth wiring insulation prevalent in the period. Zuse earned the world title of “Inventor of the Modern Computer” for his series of automatic calculators. IBM and other US manufactures simply copied many of his designs including the replaceable pluggable electronic module. In 1936, Zuse built a mechanical calculator called the Z1 that is considered the first binary computer with groundbreaking technologies in computer development. The Z1 had floating point arithmetic, high capacity memory and modules or relays operating on Zuse designs. In 1939 he completed the Z2 that was also a fully functioning electro mechanical computer and by the early 1940s produced the Z3 model that was fully stored program machine and another first. The Z3 had an amazing 64 word memory. A historical note about stored program input was that Zuse used Movie film to read in programs as paper for card input was scarce (i.e. 5081 card). Konrad quickly began work on the Z4 model with many more 1st computer designs including 1,024 word memory. At the outbreak of WWII, he smuggled out several of his machines before the Nazi party could confiscate them. Konrad Zuse wrote the first algorithmic programming language called 'Plankalkül' in 1946, which he used to program his computers. He also wrote the world's first chess-playing program using Plankalkül. In 1949 Konrad Zuse moved back to Germany and continued development with many new designs. The Zuse computers were initially built in Berlin and upon his return to Germany he set up shop in Bad Hersfeld. In 1960, he rebuilt the Z3 model (produced under 5 machines and to our research NO complete Zuse computers can be found). There are only a handful of these Zuse pluggable units. In a recent Germany auction a Zuse Tube sold for 3,200 Euros or $ $ 4,600.00. This pluggable unit was a replacement backup pluggable, never used from 50+ years ago. Size is 7.50 length x 2.25” wide. An original Zuse tube is an incredible piece of computing history, extremely rare, seldom found and truly a museum piece for a professional collector of computer memorabilia.
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