{{Short description|1957 photograph by Harold Edgerton}} {{Use mdy dates|date=July 2024}} {{Use American English|date=July 2024}} {{Infobox artwork | title = Milk Drop Coronet | image = Milk Drop Coronet, 1957.jpg | image_upright = 1.2 | caption = Scan of a dye-transfer print at the [[MIT Museum]] | artist = [[Harold Edgerton]] | completion_date = {{date|1957-01-10|MDY}} | medium = [[Kodak Panatomic X]] and [[Ektacolor]] | subject = [[Drop (liquid)|Drop]] of [[milk]] | museum = [[MIT Museum]] | city = Original negative destroyed; see {{Section link|Milk Drop Coronet|Physical copies}} for locations of copies }}
'''''Milk Drop Coronet''''' is a [[High-speed photography|high-speed photograph]] of a [[Drop (liquid)|drop]] of [[milk]] falling onto the surface of a red pan, creating a splash resembling a [[coronet]], taken by American scientist [[Doc Edgerton|Harold "Doc" Edgerton]] on January 10, 1957. The picture was created using a [[camera]] connected to a beam of light, which triggered when the drop of milk obstructed the light.
Edgerton was an electrical engineer, and had personally developed a [[stroboscope]] which he used to take high-speed [[photographs]] of, among others, drops of liquid. He began capturing images of milk drops as early as 1932, and produced a similar picture to ''Milk Drop Coronet'' titled ''Milk Drop Coronet Splash'' in 1936.
''Milk Drop Coronet'' has been called an "uncannily beautiful image" by ''[[The New York Times|New York Times]]'' art critic [[Ken Johnson (art critic)|Ken Johnson]], appeared in [[Time (magazine)|''Time'' magazine]]'s list of ''Most Influential Images of All Time'', and exhibited in various [[art museums]].
== Background == Harold Eugene Edgerton was an American photographer and scientist who earned a [[Doctor of Philosophy|PhD]] at the [[Massachusetts Institute of Technology]] in 1931, where he served as a professor of [[electrical engineering]].<ref>{{Citation |last=Morgan |first=Ann Lee |title=Edgerton, Harold Eugene |date=2018-05-24 |work=The Oxford Dictionary of American Art and Artists |url=https://www.oxfordreference.com/display/10.1093/acref/9780191807671.001.0001/acref-9780191807671-e-409 |access-date=2024-07-18 |publisher=Oxford University Press |language=en |isbn=978-0-19-180767-1}}</ref> In 1932, Edgerton designed a [[stroboscope]] that could emit 60 10‐[[microsecond]] flashes of light per second and recharge in less than a microsecond, which could thus be used to take high-speed photographs.<ref name=":0">{{Citation |last=Braun |first=Marta |title=Edgerton, Harold |date=2005 |work=The Oxford Companion to the Photograph |url=https://www.oxfordreference.com/display/10.1093/acref/9780198662716.001.0001/acref-9780198662716-e-472 |access-date=2024-07-18 |publisher=Oxford University Press |language=en |doi= |isbn=978-0-19-866271-6}}</ref> Edgerton, who initially intended to use the stroboscope to study [[Electric motor|electrical motors]],<ref>{{Cite web |last=Bedi |first=Joyce |title=Drops & Splashes |url=https://mitmuseum.mit.edu/collections/harold-doc-edgerton/edgerton-iconic-images/iconic-images-1-4 |access-date=2024-07-18 |website=MIT Museum |language=en |archive-date=July 18, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240718125910/https://mitmuseum.mit.edu/collections/harold-doc-edgerton/edgerton-iconic-images/iconic-images-1-4 |url-status=live }}</ref> extended his efforts to photos of bullets being shot, flying insects, and drops of liquid.<ref name=":0" /> Edgerton had begun making photographs of drops of milk splashing as early as 1932,<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |title=Milk Drop Coronet |url=https://www.artic.edu/artworks/120885/milk-drop-coronet |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240328113033/https://www.artic.edu/artworks/120885/milk-drop-coronet |archive-date=2024-03-28 |access-date=2024-07-18 |website=[[Art Institute Chicago]]}}</ref> and four years later, he created a [[black-and-white]] photograph, titled ''Milk Drop Coronet Splash'', of a splash of milk forming a [[Crown|coronal]] shape, similar to ''Milk Drop Coronet''.<ref name=":1" /><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Lopatka |first=Alex |date=2024-05-01 |title=Making an educational splash |url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/pt.owvc.fjei |journal=Physics Today |volume=77 |issue=5 |pages=56 |doi=10.1063/pt.owvc.fjei |bibcode=2024PhT....77e..56L |issn=0031-9228|url-access=subscription }}</ref> In the second edition of his 1939 book ''Flash! Seeing the Unseen by Ultra High-Speed Photography'', Edgerton wrote that two principles should be kept in mind when viewing his photographs of splashes and drops:<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Edgerton |first1=Harold Eugene |url=http://archive.org/details/flashseeingunsee00edge |title=Flash! Seeing the unseen by ultra high-speed photography |last2=Killian |first2=James Rhyne |author-link2=James Rhyne Killian |publisher=Charles T. Branford Company |year=1954 |edition=2nd |location=Boston |pages=107 |language=en |url-access=registration}}</ref>
{{Blockquote|text=First, the behavior of liquids is affected by [[surface tension]]. The surface layers of any liquid act like a stretched skin or membrane (a drumhead, for example) which is always trying to contract and diminish its area. Second, a spout or column of liquid, beyond a certain length in relation to its diameter, is unstable and tends to break down into a series of [[equidistant]] drops. As these drops are formed, they are joined together by narrow necks of liquid which in turn break up into smaller drops.|author=Edgerton|title=''Flash! Seeing the Unseen by Ultra High-Speed Photography''|source=p. 107}}
== Creation == [[File:Edgerton_notebook_January_10,_1957.jpg|thumb|215x215px|On the same day it was made, Edgerton detailed his process for creating the photograph in his notebook.<ref name=":2" />]] The photograph was created on January 10, 1957.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |title=Milk Drop Coronet |url=https://mitmuseum.mit.edu/collections/object/HEE-NC-57001 |access-date=2024-07-18 |website=MIT Museum |language=en |archive-date=May 25, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240525223327/https://mitmuseum.mit.edu/collections/object/HEE-NC-57001 |url-status=live }}</ref> Milk was selected for its high contrast and its opacity.<ref name=":3">{{Cite web |last=Bryce |first=Emma |date=2015-06-03 |title=The Story Behind That Iconic Milk Drop Picture |url=https://www.sciencefriday.com/articles/picture-of-the-week-milk-drop/ |access-date=2024-07-18 |website=Science Friday |language=en-US |archive-date=July 18, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240718155018/https://www.sciencefriday.com/articles/picture-of-the-week-milk-drop/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Edgerton connected his camera to [[xenon]] [[flashtube]]s, then positioned it in front of a dripper that steadily released droplets onto a red pan. The photo was taken when the first drop fell through and thereby briefly blocked a beam of light connected to a detector. This first drop is seen in the photograph as forming the splash, under a second drop falling.<ref name=":3" /><ref name=":2" />
== Physical copies == According to [[Gus Kayafas]], the original [[Negative (photography)|photographic negative]] was destroyed.<ref name=":2" /> Several prints of the photograph have been made, which were distributed to and exhibited in art museums. {| class="wikitable sortable" |+ !scope="col"|Date printed !scope="col"|Medium !scope="col"|Dimensions (image) !scope="col"|Location !scope="col" class="unsortable"|{{Ref.}} |- |1957 |[[Dye transfer]] |{{Times|{{convert|46.7|cm|in}}|{{convert|33.9|cm|in}}}} !scope="row"|[[Art Institute of Chicago]] |<ref name=":1" /> |- |1957 |Dye transfer |{{N/a}} ![[MIT Museum]] |<ref name=":2" /> |- |1957 |Dye transfer |{{Times|{{convert|46.5|cm|in}}|{{convert|33.8|cm|in}}}} !scope="row"|[[Denver Art Museum]] |<ref>{{Cite web |title=Milk Drop Coronet {{!}} Denver Art Museum |url=https://www.denverartmuseum.org/en/object/1996.57.2 |access-date=2024-07-18 |website=www.denverartmuseum.org |archive-date=July 18, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240718192342/https://www.denverartmuseum.org/en/object/1996.57.2 |url-status=live }}</ref> |- |1957 |[[Chromogenic print|C-type]] |{{Times|{{convert|25.4|cm|in}}|{{convert|19.2|cm|in}}}} !scope="row"|[[Amon Carter Museum of American Art]] |<ref>{{Cite web |title=Milk Drop Coronet |url=https://www.cartermuseum.org/collection/milk-drop-coronet-p1991325 |access-date=2024-07-18 |website=www.cartermuseum.org |language=en |archive-date=July 18, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240718200804/https://www.cartermuseum.org/collection/milk-drop-coronet-p1991325 |url-status=live }}</ref> |- |1957 |Dye transfer |{{Times|{{convert|50.5|cm|in}}|{{convert|40.64|cm|in}}}} !scope="row"|[[San Francisco Museum of Modern Art]] |<ref>{{Cite web |title=Milk Drop Coronet |url=https://www.sfmoma.org/artwork/96.585.3/ |access-date=2024-07-18 |website=SFMOMA |language=en-US |archive-date=July 18, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240718200806/https://www.sfmoma.org/artwork/96.585.3/ |url-status=live }}</ref> |- |1957 |Dye transfer |{{Times|{{convert|46.5|cm|in}}|{{convert|33.8|cm|in}}}} !scope="row"|[[Philadelphia Museum of Art]] |<ref>{{Cite web |title=Milk Drop Coronet |url=https://philamuseum.org/collection/object/90627 |access-date=2024-07-18 |website=philamuseum.org |language=en |archive-date=July 18, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240718200805/https://philamuseum.org/collection/object/90627 |url-status=live }}</ref> |- |1957 |Dye transfer |{{N/a}} !scope="row"|[[Museum of Fine Arts (St. Petersburg, Florida)]] |<ref>{{Cite web |title=Milk Drop Coronet |url=https://mfastpete.org/obj/milk-drop-coronet/ |access-date=2024-07-18 |website=Museum of Fine Arts, St Petersburg |language=en |archive-date=July 18, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240718200805/https://mfastpete.org/obj/milk-drop-coronet/ |url-status=live }}</ref> |- |1957 |Dye transfer |{{Times|{{convert|47|cm|in}}|{{convert|33.7|cm|in}}}} !scope="row"|[[New Mexico Museum of Art]] |<ref>{{Cite web |title=Milk Drop Coronet |url=https://sam.nmartmuseum.org/objects/10678/milk-drop-coronet |access-date=2024-07-18 |website=sam.nmartmuseum.org |language=en |archive-date=July 18, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240718200807/https://sam.nmartmuseum.org/objects/10678/milk-drop-coronet |url-status=live }}</ref> |- |1957 |Dye transfer |{{Times|{{convert|46.5|cm|in}}|{{convert|34|cm|in}}}} !scope="row"|[[Harvard Art Museums]] |<ref>{{Cite web |last=Harvard |title=Milk Drop Coronet {{!}} Harvard Art Museums |url=https://harvardartmuseums.org/collections/object/172417 |access-date=2024-07-18 |website=harvardartmuseums.org |language=en}}</ref> |- |{{sort|1957|After 1957}} |C-type |{{Times|{{convert|54|cm|in}}|{{convert|34.5|cm|in}}}} !scope="row"|[[Victoria and Albert Museum]] |<ref>{{Cite web |date=2003-08-05 |title=Milk Drop Coronet |url=https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O83197/milk-drop-coronet-photograph-edgerton-harold/ |access-date=2024-07-18 |website=[[Victoria and Albert Museum]] |archive-date=July 18, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240718200804/https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O83197/milk-drop-coronet-photograph-edgerton-harold/ |url-status=live }}</ref> |- |{{sort|1957|After 1957}} |Dye transfer |{{Times|{{convert|35.6|cm|in}}|{{convert|27.9|cm|in}}}} !scope="row"|[[The Phillips Collection]] |<ref>{{Cite web |title=Milk Drop Coronet {{!}} The Phillips Collection |url=https://www.phillipscollection.org/collection/milk-drop-coronet |access-date=2024-07-18 |website=www.phillipscollection.org |language=en |archive-date=July 18, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240718200805/https://www.phillipscollection.org/collection/milk-drop-coronet |url-status=live }}</ref> |- |1963 |Dye transfer |{{Times|{{convert|24.8|cm|in}}|{{convert|20|cm|in}}}} !scope="row"|[[Museum of Modern Art]] |<ref>{{Cite web |title=Harold Eugen Edgerton. Milk Drop Coronet. 1957 |url=https://www.moma.org/collection/works/49855 |access-date=2024-07-18 |website=[[MoMA]] |archive-date=May 25, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240525224208/https://www.moma.org/collection/works/49855 |url-status=live }}</ref> |- |1977 |Dye transfer |{{Times|{{convert|35.4|cm|in}}|{{convert|28|cm|in}}}} !scope="row"|[[National Gallery of Canada]] |<ref>{{Cite web |title=Milk Drop Coronet |url=https://www.gallery.ca/collection/artwork/milk-drop-coronet |access-date=2024-07-18 |website=[[National Gallery of Canada]] |archive-date=July 18, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240718200806/https://www.gallery.ca/collection/artwork/milk-drop-coronet |url-status=live }}</ref> |- |1985 |Dye transfer |{{Times|{{convert|46.7|cm|in}}|{{convert|34.2|cm|in}}}} !scope="row"|[[Princeton University Art Museum]] |<ref>{{Cite web |title=Milk Drop Coronet (x1987-20.3) |url=https://artmuseum.princeton.edu/collections/objects/16597 |access-date=2024-07-18 |website=artmuseum.princeton.edu |language=en |archive-date=July 18, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240718200805/https://artmuseum.princeton.edu/collections/objects/16597 |url-status=live }}</ref> |- |1984{{Ndash}}1990 |Dye transfer |{{Times|{{convert|46.7|cm|in}}|{{convert|34|cm|in}}}} !scope="row"|[[Whitney Museum]] |<ref>{{Cite web |title=Harold Edgerton {{!}} Milk Drop Coronet |url=https://whitney.org/collection/works/10929 |access-date=2024-07-18 |website=whitney.org |language=en |archive-date=May 25, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240525224208/https://whitney.org/collection/works/10929 |url-status=live }}</ref> |}
== Reception and legacy == Art critic [[Ken Johnson (art critic)|Ken Johnson]], writing for ''[[The New York Times]]'' in 2001, called the photograph an "uncannily beautiful image" and compared Edgerton's work to [[Eadweard Muybridge]]'s photography.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Johnson |first=Ken |author-link=Ken Johnson (art critic) |date=2001-01-05 |title=ART IN REVIEW; Dr. Harold Edgerton |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2001/01/05/arts/art-in-review-dr-harold-edgerton.html |access-date=2024-07-18 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=July 18, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240718214050/https://www.nytimes.com/2001/01/05/arts/art-in-review-dr-harold-edgerton.html |url-status=live }}</ref> In 2016, the photograph was included in [[Time (magazine)|''Time'' magazine]]'s ''100 Photographs: The Most Influential Images of All Time''.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Vogel |first=Karl |date=2016-11-17 |title=Alum Edgerton's work among "Most Influential Images of All Time" {{!}} College of Engineering {{!}} University of Nebraska–Lincoln |url=https://engineering.unl.edu/alum-edgertons-work-among-most-influential-images-all-time/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200507134058/https://engineering.unl.edu/alum-edgertons-work-among-most-influential-images-all-time/ |archive-date=2020-05-07 |access-date=2024-07-18 |website=engineering.unl.edu}}</ref> The corresponding article read that the picture "proved that photography could advance human understanding of the physical world."<ref>{{Cite web |title=Milk Drop Coronet |url=https://100photos.time.com/photos/harold-edgerton-milk-drop |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161119052704/https://100photos.time.com/photos/harold-edgerton-milk-drop |archive-date=2016-11-19 |access-date=2024-07-18 |website=100photos.time.com}}</ref>
Mathematicians [[Marty Golubitsky|Martin Golubitsky]] and [[Ian Stewart (mathematician)|Ian Stewart]] used the photograph to illustrate the phenomenon of [[Symmetry breaking|symmetry-breaking]] in their 1992 book ''Fearful symmetry: is God a geometer?''<ref>{{Cite book |last=Kastner |first=Ruth E. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=91tqEAAAQBAJ |title=The Transactional Interpretation of Quantum Mechanics: A Relativistic Treatment |date=2022-04-28 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-1-108-90849-8 |pages=76 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last1=Stewart |first1=Ian Nicholas |author-link1=Ian Stewart (mathematician) |url=http://archive.org/details/fearfulsymmetryi0000stew |title=Fearful symmetry: is God a geometer? |last2=Golubitsky |first2=Martin Aaron |author-link2=Marty Golubitsky |date=1992 |publisher=[[Blackwell Publishers]] |others=Internet Archive |isbn=978-0-14-013047-8 |pages=6 |language=en |url-access=registration}}</ref>
== See also ==
* [[List of photographs considered the most important]]
== References == <references />
== External links ==
* [[hdl:1721.3/200248|Archive of Edgerton's notebook from December 19, 1956, to April 29, 1958]]
[[Category:Color photographs]] [[Category:1957 photographs]] [[Category:Milk in culture]]