In 1845 German chemist Friedrich Wöhler, who had been attempting to produce aluminum for many years, finally succeeded in obtaining the pinhead-sized globules of the metal, shown here in this test tube. The samples were large enough for him to analyze. He discovered several basic physical properties of aluminum, particularly its startlingly light weight.

Friedrich Wöhler
German, 1800–1882
Test tube with aluminum particles, 1845
aluminum and glass
L. 3 7/8 in. (10 cm)
Deutsches Museum, Munich