The phonautograph was invented by a Frenchman in the 1850’s and was the first device to record sound. Researchers played back these early recordings as sound for the first time in 2008. – WTF Fun Facts
Source: https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=89380697
@Craig. The sentence is perfectly fine the way it is written. Just because you got confused does not mean it is incorrect. It says the 1850s. Stop projecting your incompetence.
Researchers played back these early recordings as sound for the first time in 2008
The sound was not recorded in 2008, sentence should be:
In 2008, Researchers played back these early recordings as sound for the first time.