Schott was among the first to report the “Miracle of Magdeburg,” the sensational story of Otto von Guericke’s public demonstration of the reality of the vacuum. Von Guericke bolted two large hemispheres together, then evacuated the air inside them with his air pump. The sphere was attached to the harnesses of opposing teams of horses. When the bolts were removed, the horses could not overcome the strength of the vacuum, i.e., of the pressure of the column of overhead air pressing the hemispheres together.