This artifact, possibly a pump part, may have been used in the liquid-fuel experiments of American rocket pioneer Robert H. Goddard around 1930.
It was found in the Smithsonian collections, but likely was originally part of a major gift of Goddard artifacts to the Smithsonian by the Daniel and Florence Guggenheim Foundation in 1950.
This object is not on display at the National Air and Space Museum. It is either on loan or in storage.