In 1805 Kempelen's son sold the machine to Johann Nepomuk Mälzel, a Bavarian musician interested in machines and devices. Mälzel had designed a type of metronome. He had tried to purchase the Turk before Kempelen's death but the price was too high. Mälzel had to learn how the machine worked and make some repairs. He wanted to make the Turk a greater challenge. 