Augustus Siebe
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Christian Augustus Siebe (known by his middle name; 1788 – 15 April 1872) was a British engineer chiefly known for his contributions to diving equipment.<ref name=acott>Template:Cite journal</ref>
Contribution to diving
In the 1830s the Deane brothers asked Siebe to make a variation of their smoke helmet design for underwater use.<ref name=acott/> Later they turned to him to produce more helmets for diving operations. Expanding on improvements already made by another engineer, George Edwards, Siebe produced his own design; a helmet fitted to a full length watertight canvas diving suit. The real success of the equipment was a valve in the helmet.
Colonel Charles Pasley, leader of the Royal Navy team that used Siebe's suit on the wreck of Template:HMS suggested the helmet should be detachable from the corselet, giving rise to the typical standard diving dress which revolutionised underwater civil engineering, underwater salvage, commercial diving and naval diving.<ref name=acott/>
The company that carried his name Siebe Gorman Ltd was founded by him and his son-in-law, Gorman.<ref name=acott/>
He is commemorated by a blue plaque on his former home in Denmark Street, London.<ref name="english-heritage/plaques/siebe">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Other inventions
Besides his contributions to diving he also invented:
- a rotating water pump patented in 1828,
- A paper making machine,
- a Dial weighing scale,
- an ice-making machine (with James Harrison).
In 1823, Siebe won the Vulcan medal from the Royal Society of Arts for an improved screw threading tool.<ref name="gracesguide/Augustus-Siebe">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Siebe won many medals at the Great Exhibition in 1851 and the Paris Exhibition in 1855.
He died 15 April 1872 of chronic bronchitis, at his London home.<ref name=acott/> He was buried at the West Norwood Cemetery.