Next week a few folks from my turning club will visit the Old Schwamb Mill. There is an "elliptical lathe" that has been turning large oval picture frames for 130+ years, we'll see it in action. I'm told that earplugs are a good idea 
Old Schwamb Mill, Arlington MA
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It would be cool to see pictures of that after your visit.
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I'll try to remember
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Just got back from the Schwamb Mill after a great visit. What a cool place! When I figure out how to get videos uploaded someplace I will link to them, meantime here are a couple of pix. First is the largest of the four elliptical lathes they have in working condition - it can turn up to 69" on the long axis, and up to 32" difference. The man in the photo is the turner who operates it, he's perhaps 6' tall.
Second photo shows the mechanism of one of the smaller lathes, with the adjustable eccentric ring that causes the whole faceplate to shift back and forth as the drive shaft rotates it.
Second photo shows the mechanism of one of the smaller lathes, with the adjustable eccentric ring that causes the whole faceplate to shift back and forth as the drive shaft rotates it.
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Link to video of elliptical lathes turning - regular speed and in slo-mo.
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Old Schwamb Mill, Arlington MA elliptical picture frame lathes
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That's an incredible mechanism. The ingenuity possessed by our ancestors, with none of the technology we possess today, is almost unbelievable.
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Yes indeed.
He pointed out that the mechanism is cast iron - meaning somebody had to make a pattern for each part (probably wood), which somebody else would then use to make the molds and cast, then each unit would have its components ground and smoothed to fit perfectly together with their life-time partners. None of the parts would be interchangeable between lathes (except by accident). Meaning it isn't just the design that's ingenious, the process of making each one also took a lot of skill.