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(Image: GETTY/CEN)

A model of the device was unveiled with a high-tech VR headset to give inquisitive onlookers a glimpse of what it would feel like to sit in front of the big red button.

The “Sarco”, short for sarcophagus, is a 3D-printed machine invented by Philip Nitschke of Australia.

The futuristic pod is designed to allow people a quick, simple way for people to end their life without risking harm to others.

It comes with a detachable coffin, and relies on the use of an infuser nitrogen delivery system where a canister feeds the chamber.

Crowds gathered on Saturday to take a VR tour of how the machine would feel.

“The person who wants to die presses the button and the capsule is filled with nitrogen,” said Nitschke.

“He or she will feel a bit dizzy but will then rapidly lose consciousness and die.”

The Sarco was a device “to provide people with a death when they wish to die,” Nitschke said.

The first fully-operational pod is due to be displayed at the end of the year.

Thereafter, the design will be put online as an open-source document, meaning anybody can log onto the internet and print the device themselves.

(Image: GETTY)

Nitschke said: “In many countries suicide is not against the law, only assisting a person to commit suicide is.

“This is a situation where one person chooses to press a button... rather than for instance standing in front of a train.

“I believe it’s a fundamental human right [to choose when to die]. It’s not just some medical privilege for the very sick. If you’ve got the precious gift of life, you should be able to give that gift away at the time of your choosing.”

Attracting thousands from across the world, the exhibition in the Dutch city of Venray split those who experienced it.

Verstraaten, 52, from Venray, said: “It was really an experience and a strange thing to see. But very pretty and calm. You see the moon, you see the sea. It’s very calm.”

(Image: GETTY)

Rob Bruntink, 52, disagreed, saying: “Well, I think it’s quite silly. It’s stupid. I don’t get it. I’m not interested in a real ‘Sarco’. No.”

The device sparked a debate online on the morality of suicide.

One reddit user asked: “If this is such a peaceful and cheap way to die, then why do places in the US spend so much money on carrying out death sentences?

“A lot of the drugs they use are in sort supply and also expensive. Nitrogen and an airtight space... can't get a lot cheaper than that and still be considered humane.”

There has been considerable opposition to the machine becoming publicly available.