Scientific Instrument Society

Bulletin September No. 78 2003 Bulletin of the Scientific Instrument Society ISSN 0956-8271

For Table of Contents, see back cover

President Gerard Turner Vice-President Howard Dawes Honorary Committee Gloria Clifton, Chairman Ron Bristow,Vice-Chairman Robert Warren, Secretary Simon Cheifetz,Treasurer Willem Hackmann, Editor Peter de Clercq, Meetings Secretary Alexander Crum Ewing Paul Goodman Neil Handley Stephen Johnston Patrick Mill Tom Newth Sylvia Sumira Trevor Waterman

Membership and Administrative matters The Executive Officer (Wg Cdr Geoffrey Bennett) 31 High Street Stanford in the Vale Tel: 01367 710223 Faringdon Fax: 01367 718963 Oxon SN7 8LH e-mail: [email protected]

See outside back cover for information on membership

Editorial Matters Dr.Willem Hackmann Sycamore House The Playing Close Tel: 01608 811110 Charlbury Fax: 01608 811971 Oxon OX7 3QP e-mail: [email protected]

Society’s Website www.sis.org.uk

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Anniversaries fascinating instruments described in the We have reached another milestone.It was Bulletins. in the Summer of 1983, exactly twenty Mindful of the first Editor’s words, we are years ago,that our Bulletin saw the light of continually striving to maintain the day.According to the Society’s first press Bulletin’s relevance to the membership,by release in April of that year,‘the Society aims trying out new features of which the latest to contribute to historical knowledge and is our ‘Amateur Page’– absent in this issue as understanding through the collection,con- no contributions have reached the editori- servation and study of scientific artefacts’. al office. So hopefully you agree with the This inspired the late Jon Darius, our first late Jon Darius that your Bulletin is not set Editor, to write: in a cast iron mold. The establishment of a new society always All in all we can be satisfied with our past occasions trepidation enough: Will it attract progress but we cannot sit on our laurels, enough members? (We already number as is made clear in this year’s AGM report over 100.) If so,will they be sleepers or par- (Fig. 1).Today’s financial pressures dictate ticipators? Will the avowed aims be fulfilled, that in order to flourish we must maintain, or will the whole enterprise lumber along or better still,increase our membership.You expanding most of its energy in unproduc- must assist us in this aim by telling us of tive meetings and minutes, minutes and Fig. 1 Our new Vice-Chairman, Ron your needs and interests. meetings? Bristow, reading this year’s Secretary’s Report at the AGM. Photograph by the In this issue the Editor is flying a new kite. He continues: Editor. Under the rubric of ‘Viewpoint’,he is invit- This first issue of the ing members to start discussions on semi- Society’s Bulletin is not nal instrumental issues.Contributors can be intended to set a mold upon as polemical as they wish (but not libelous) which all future’s issues will in attempts to generate discussion.The bulk be slavishly fashioned.Rather of this issue celebrates the instruments of it is a message from the Scotland as experienced by the lucky mem- Steering Committee to the bers who went on this visit.The scene of instrumentally committed this rich legacy is set by Alison Morrison- world at large to declare that Low’s introductory paper:‘Instruments in we mean business, that we Scotland and Scottish Instruments’.A heart- are anxious to set about felt ‘thank you’ is offered to her and fellow achieving the stated aims at organizers for the rich harvest in these once,that we invite all waver- pages (Fig.2).Mike Cowham has produced ing candidates for member- for the Society a pictorial record of the visit ship to join the bandwagon – on a CD-rom. It can be obtained from him and all members in good for £10,including p & p.For details contact standing to suggest best to him on [email protected] redesign it! The Editor may be permitted to whisper another anniversary uniquely relevant to Jon Darius’ inspirational words were Fig. 2 A selection of Charles Wheatstone’s him. He is completing this Bulletin on his echoed by Howard Dawes when as electrical apparatus from the 1840s in the sixtieth birthday. Chairman he wrote the ‘Chairman’s Royal Museum, Edinburgh.Photograph by Address’in the Fiftieth Issue of the Bulletin, Claus Jensen. the Society’s next major milestone in September 1996: Bulletin’s Cover So we are standing the test of time and have achieved much.The Society will continue This large geodetic transit theodolite is to support actively the promotion and mar- chosen for this cover to celebrate the keting of serious publications and books on wonderful instruments seen by the SIS our subject. It is one way that we feel we members during their visit to Scotland,and can best serve our wider membership. is referred to by Alison Morrison-Low in her introductory paper in this issue.It was made Surveying the seventy-seven Bulletins pub- by Troughton & Simms of London and was lished to date, the Society has indeed owned by the amateur astronomer Lord achieved a lot in the context of its limited Lindsay (later 26th Earl of Crawford and resources.We are blessed with an active and Balcarres).In the early 1870s,his private stimulating membership (although we observatory at Dun Echt in Aberdeenshire could do with increasing our numbers) and was fitted out with first class instruments. At we have a solid core of contributors the same time,he was planning a visit to the (although we are always looking for inter- island of Mauritius to coincide with a Transit esting papers and comments).The Society of Venus across the Sun’s disc.This has supported several important books and instrument,with its finely engraved gold also the work of students.The visits in this scale,was used on Mauritius both as a country and abroad arranged by a succes- geodetic transit, sion of Meetings Secretaries have been and as a portable alt-azimuth.Inv.No. much enjoyed and have unearthed many 1986.L2.45,Royal Observatory, Edinburgh.

Bulletin of the Scientific Instrument Society No. 78 (2003) 1 Announcements

MINUTES OF THE 20th ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING of the Scientific Instrument Society held at the Society of Antiquaries, Burlington House, London W1V 0LQ on Wednesday 2nd July 2003 at 4.00 p.m.

Dr Gloria Clifton in the Chair. ty of the project,members were recently asked in the Bulletin obtain a place at the previous workshop. It will be led by The Chairman welcomed everyone to the AGM. to indicate the likelihood of their purchasing the product. Ian McIntyre and there will be an opportunity to compare 1. Apologies were received from Howard Dawes, Paul The Executive Officer has proceeded with the compilation of genuine objects with electroform copies. Goodman, Neil Handley,Tom Lamb and Trevor Waterman. the index for Bulletin numbers 50 to 75 which will be pub- (iii) 26th November 2003: the annual lecture this year is to be 2. Adoption of Minutes of the Annual General Meeting held on lished on the Society’s web site. given by Michael Wright, Curator of Mechanical 10 July 2002,which had been printed in SIS Bulletin,No.74, Publications Sub-Committee Engineering at the Science Museum,London. He will speak September 2002, was proposed by Maurice Kenn, seconded The publications sub-committee continues to look out for on the Antikythera mechanism. by Allen Mills and agreed. books whose publication can be assisted through an arrange- (iv) 2nd –3rd July 2004: there will be a weekend conference in rd 3. Secretary’s Report ment to market them at a discount to members. No suitable Cambridge, including the AGM on Saturday 3 July. Ron Bristow,the Executive Secretary,read the Annual Report. proposals arose during the past year and the Committee would (v) October 2004: plans are being explored for a visit to be glad to have suggestions from members. Manchester. Committee Risk Assessment (vi) 2005: plans have been outlined for a possible combined The Committee met on 8 occasions during the year reported study tour to Prague and Vienna.This is to be confirmed. on.The Chairman and Committee members were particularly As required by the Charity Commission rules,the risks to which pleased that the Editor was sufficiently recovered from his acci- the Society is exposed were examined in the previous year and (vii) 2006:a study tour to America has been proposed and out- dent to be able to attend meetings again and wish to record reviewed again this year.No further steps were considered nec- line proposals are being explored. their sincere thanks and gratitude to him for continuing to pro- essary. In addition to these plans,Arthur Middleton suggested a possi- duce the Bulletin and to progress other editorial matters Committee Terms of Reference ble future study tour to St. Petersburg and Moscow. No deci- despite being indisposed. Committee Members’ and Officers’ terms of reference were sion was taken on this idea but it was agreed that it would be During the year Alan Stimson resigned from the Committee for prepared last year and only minor revisions were required this considered for the future. health reasons.The Committee expressed their best wishes and year. 4. Treasurer’s Report appreciation for Alan’s assistance.Although eligible,Tom Lamb Meetings Held The treasurer, Simon Cheifetz, presented the accounts for the does not stand for re-election because of pressure of business 10th July 2002:The Annual General Meeting was held at the year ended 31st December 2002. and the Committee also records its thanks to Tom. Society of Antiquities and the Minutes were published in the The reported deficit for the year was £2,118, an improvement The consistent concern of the Committee at all its meetings September 2002 Bulletin.The meeting was preceded by the on the previous year’s deficit of £2,562.The principal reason and discussions have been related to financial matters. In the following papers:Anastasia Filipppopoliti :Scientific Instrument for this improvement was a significant reduction in production present economic climate, the Committee has been particu- Collections: Looking at Material Culture of 19th Century costs for the SIS Bulletin of some £2,300, together with an larly concerned to control current expenditure, to exercise English Science; Stephen Johnston: Making and Faking: a increase in Bulletin advertising revenue of £771. These proper care of the Society’s assets and to avoid risks.The main Progress Report on the Mensing Project; Deac Rossell: The improvements relating to the Bulletin more than offset a reduc- item of expenditure is the cost of producing the Bulletin;the Early Years of Magic Lanterns. tion in subscriptions and lower interest income. Overall, the principal source of income is the members’subscriptions.Both 5th October 2002:Bristol.A group of members visited the Brunel Society’s operating costs were broadly similar to 2001.As for items are dealt with in this and in the Treasurer’s Report. Collection of instruments and archive material at the University the previous year there was a small deficit on society meetings, To ensure that the Committee membership reflects as wide a Library.This was followed by a visit to the Camera Obscura at principally because we do not charge for attending the AGM cross-section of members’ interests as possible, Society mem- Clifton and in the afternoon to the Industrial Museum to see and November Lecture meeting. Last year the Society sought bers were invited by way of a notice in the Bulletin to express instruments by Bristol and other makers. Dr Alison Morrison- to maximize interest income, despite falling rates, by reducing interest in serving on the Committee. Several members Low gave an illustrated talk on Bristol instrument makers,draw- current account balances and placing more funds in Building expressed their interest and attended Committee meetings as ing on her extensive study of the provincial trade. Society accounts.The decision made by the Committee in 2001 observers;four are now proposed as Committee members. This 25th November 2002:The 10th Annual Invitation Lecture was to avoid equity investments proved its worth again in 2002, as will be of great value in maintaining a succession of Committee given by the Society’s President, Professor G.L’E Turner on the the Stock Market continued to fall during the year. membership and in ensuring that a broad range of interests is subject Scientific Instruments:Why? The lecture was subse- Due to the Society’s Halifax Bond changing from annual to covered in the Society’s future development. quently published in the Bulletin. monthly interest payments, approximately £1000 of building Membership 24th January 2003:A group of 30 members visited the Royal society interest received in 2002 was credited to the 2001 The Society’s primary source of income is derived from mem- Institution and were given a guided tour of the establishment, accounts.Taking this factor into account, the actual deficit for bers’subscriptions.Additional sales of Bulletins and other items laboratories, works of art and some instruments by Dr Frank 2002 was closer to £1,100. are peripheral though useful. James,Keeper of Collections and Reader in History of Science. The Committee has reviewed the level of the annual subscrip- Membership was: 544 at 31st December 2002 (568 in 2001); 29th April – 3rd May 2003:The annual conference visit took place tion rates for 2004. It may be recalled we did not raise sub- 496 at 2nd June 2003 (527 in 2002); 498 at 1st July 2003. in Scotland and was led by Dr Alison Morrison – Low. scription rates last year due to concerns over falling member- Collections in museums and universities in Edinburgh,Glasgow, ship numbers. However, an increase in 2004 to £40.00 for UK Thus,as is the experience of similar societies,the membership members and £48.00 for overseas is necessitated to allow the level has fallen slightly in the last two years.The Committee has St.Andrews, Dundee, and Aberdeen were visited by the 35 del- egates who received a full treatment on instrument-making and Society to cover its forecasted operating costs.This will be the been concerned to maintain the membership at close to the first increase for four years. previous levels as far as possible so that the established pattern notable scientists in Scotland, as well as the history of science of the Bulletin and the activities programme can be continued. teaching and research in Scottish universities.The conference Appointment of the Auditors Committee members have therefore undertaken particular was considered to have been outstandingly successful. 1 can report that the conduct and advice received from our duties in connection with recruitment and publicity during the In addition, the Society was represented at the Antique auditors, Critchleys, has been of a high standard and I would year. Scientific Instrument Fairs in Autumn 2002 and in April 2003, therefore like to propose that they be re-appointed for the com- Bulletin the Desk being kindly provided by Stuart Talbot, former ing year. The largest item of expenditure by far is the production of four Chairman and member of the Society,to whom the Committee The adoption of the report was proposed by Toby Rigby, sec- Bulletins each year.It is the aim of the Committee to maintain expresses its sincere thanks. onded by Gilbert Satterthwaite and agreed unanimously. the frequency and form of the Bulletin in order to retain the Future Plans 5. Election of Committee for 2003-2004 known interests of the membership.It is also considered impor- 18th-19th October 2003:Weekend visit to Belgium. The Chairman said that no further nominations had been tant to retain the high regard in which the Bulletin is now held 26th November 2003:Workshop on Electroforming at the British received since the circulation of the agenda for the AGM so the by other institutions. Museum, followed by: list of nominees proposed by the committee stands.These are: Although the Committee was very satisfied with the quality of 26th November 2003: Eleventh Medal Lecture at the Society of Chairman Dr Gloria Clifton, Vice Chairman Mr Ron Bristow, the Bulletin as produced by Lithoflow over many years from Antiquaries.Speaker:Mr Michael Wright,Curator of Mechanical Secretary Mr Simon Cheifetz, Editor Dr Willem Hackmann, their London base, it was necessary to examine alternatives Engineering at the Science Museum. Meetings Secretary Dr Peter De Clercq; Other Committee with a view to reducing costs.Arrangements have now been th th Members: Mr Alexander Crum Ewing, Mr Paul Goodman, Mr 25 -26 June 2004:Visit to Whipple Museum and Museum of Neil Handley, Dr Stephen Johnston, Mr Patrick Mill, Mr Tom made with a provincial supplier to produce the Bulletin at an Technology at Cambridge, with sessions, boat trip with buffet equivalent quality and at a substantially lower price.The first Newth, Ms Sylvia Sumira.The adoption of the nominees was dinner.The Annual General Meeting for 2004 will be held at proposed by Arthur Middleton,seconded by David Bryden and issues from the new supplier have already reached members. Churchill College during this visit. The goodwill of Lithoflow has been retained and both the they were duly declared elected. Chairman and the Editor have written to them to express Annual Conference for 2004: Discussions are taking place The chairman also informed the meeting that the Committee thanks and appreciation of their past services. regarding the possibility of a return visit to Prague.A possible intended to propose the nomination of Trevor Waterman as a visit to the USA is also under discussion and several of our co-opted member at their first meeting after the AGM. It has been suggested at meetings and in correspondence that American members have made valuable suggestions.The key articles on practical aspects of scientific instruments would factor is the availability of relevant collections within a man- Other Appointments broaden the appeal of the Bulletin and the Society.This sug- ageable distance of each other.There are however difficulties in It was proposed by Gloria Clifton, seconded by Ron Bristow gestion is being addressed; members have been and are again relation to both locations in 2004 and further information will and agreed unanimously, that Gerard Turner be re-elected invited to submit appropriate material to the Editor, allowing be issued in due course. President of the Society and that Howard Dawes be re-elected adequate lead-time for publication. It has also been suggested Record of Thanks Vice President of the Society. that demonstrations of particular aspects of instrument-mak- 6. Any Other Business ing skills should form the basis of a future meeting,such as has The Committee again wishes to record its thanks to the been done with engraving and restoration. Members who are Executive Officer,Wing Commander Geoff Bennett, who has The Chairman explained there has been a general concern over willing to demonstrate their own particular skills or to intro- continued to provide the administrative services, advice and the falling membership over the last year.This was a trend that duce other specialists are invited to contact the Meetings assistance essential to the Society. similar societies are facing but suggestions for ways of encour- Secretary. The adoption of the report was proposed Alan Stimson, sec- aging new membership were requested. Ideas from the floor onded by Maurice Kenn and agreed unanimously. Peter de included generating local and/or national press coverage,wide Activities During 2002-2003 distribution of the new leaflet when it is printed, raising the Bulletins on CD-rom Clercq then gave further details of the proposed study visits: th th profile of the web site and enlisting high-profile honorary mem- Work continued on the possibility of putting the Bulletins on (i) 18 –19 October 2003: visit to collections in Belgium, bers. CD-rom.Demonstrations have been given and budgetary prices including instruments at the Royal Museums in Brussels, the Royal Observatory in Ukkel, and the Museum of the The Chairman thanked the outgoing committee for all its hard have been obtained.The cost of preparing a fully searchable work over the past year and also expressed the Committee’s CD-rom is likely to be substantial and ways of financing this History of Science at the University of Ghent. th appreciation of the support received from the Executive have been considered.One possible approach is of a joint ven- (ii) 26 November 2003: an electroforming workshop at the Officer,Wing Commander Geoff Bennett,without whose efforts ture with a private company which would limit the Society’s British Museum.This is a repeat of the very successful event the Society could not function effectively. in 1999, for the benefit of those who were not able to financial exposure.To help in establishing the financial viabili- The meeting was brought to a close at 4.55 p.m.

2 Bulletin of the Scientific Instrument Society No. 78 (2003) SCIENTIFIC INSTRUMENT SOCIETY Statement of Financial Activities for the year ended 31st December 2002

Unrestricted Funds Total 2002 2001 ££ Incoming Resources GENERATION OF FUNDS Membership Subscriptions 20,599 21,582 Publications Bulletin 218 223 Adverts 2,531 1,760 FURTHERANCE OF OBJECTIVES Conferences 7,800 6,351 Investments 291 2,228 Donations 35 82 Sales - sundries 239 151 Adams Book Sales 181 (324)

Total incoming resources 31,894 32,053

Resources expended COSTS OF GENERATION OF FUNDS Bulletin 12,376 14,683 Publicity 1,158 1,377 Audit Charges 1,116 999 Purchase of Medals 0 401 Insurance, charges 1,224 1,034 CHARITABLE EXPENDITURE Conferences 8,675 6,883 Management Trustee Expenses 107 348 Executive Officer 4,238 3,991 Office 5,118 4,899

Total resources expended 34,012 34,615

Net (Outgoing) Resources (2,118) (2,562)

NOTE: There are no restricted funds. The above accounts are extracts from the audited accounts which were approved by the Committee on 17th June 2002. Members wishing to see a full set of accounts should contact the Executive Officer (address in back cover).

Bulletin of the Scientific Instrument Society No. 78 (2003) 3 Instruments in Scotland and Scottish Instruments

A.D. Morrison-Low

This was the introductory talk given to the Scientific Instrument Society’s 2003 visit to Scotland, which began in Edinburgh with excursions to the National Museums of Scotland and the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh. The introduction attempted to pull together the most significant items which delegates were to see in collec- tions around Scotland in the following days, and how they form components of a bigger picture. It is based on an article published as A.D. Morrison-Low, ‘ “Feasting my eyes with the view of fine instruments”: scientific instruments in Enlightenment Scotland, 1680-1820’, in Charles W.J. Withers and Paul Wood (eds.), Science and Medicine in the Scottish Enlightenment (East Linton, 2002), pp. 17-53. The history of the National Museums of Scotland and its broad range of collections is extremely complex, and no really good history of it has yet been put together.1 However,what follows is a brief attempt to sketch some of the routes that some of the Fig. 1 Important Indo-Persian celestial globe, dating from 1663, commonly and incorrectly more important historic scientific instru- known as the ‘Barlow Globe’. In the Museum of Scotland. Photograph by Claus Jensen. ments have made before arriving in the building. The National Museums of houses much of the historic Scottish mate- ments.4 The Department of Technology Scotland (NMS) were formed in 1985 by the rial from the former National Museum of was formed in 1901,and in 1905 the muse- amalgamation of the former National Antiquities, including some of both institu- um became, thanks to the graciousness of Museum of Antiquities of Scotland, dating tions’ earliest and more important instru- King Edward VII, the Royal Scottish from 1780, and the former Royal Scottish ments. Museum. Including a bequest of contem- porary demonstration apparatus in 1902, Museum, which had been generated from Scotland has really only one major public the acquisition of historic scientific instru- the profits and collections put together for collection of scientific instruments ments remained ad hoc:the engineers who the Great Exhibition of 1851, held in the (although there are many significant items were Keepers of Technology indulged their Crystal Palace in London (the great muse- to be seen in Scotland,some of them in uni- own interests, which lay outside this field. ums of South Kensington and also the com- versity care, some of them in private plex around Leinster House in Dublin had hands). This public collection is now in For instance, an important Indo-Persian the same basis). The collections of the for- Chambers Street in the Royal Museum:and celestial globe (Fig. 1), dating from 1663, mer National Museum of Antiquities tend- it is safe to say that much of the material commonly and incorrectly known as the ed to be stronger on Scottish material, in does not have a very extensive known his- ‘Barlow Globe’was acquired as an example particular,archaeology,Scottish history and tory before the formation of one of its pre- of Persian metalwork in 1890 from F.Du country life; whereas those of the former decessors, the Industrial Museum of Cane Godman after being shown in the Royal Scottish Museum were more interna- Scotland,in 1858.In that year,an important Richard collection at the Paris exhibition of tional in their scope with the man-made group of chemical apparatus was present- 1889;and a late 18th century astrolabe from artefacts.The collections of geology and nat- ed to George Wilson,the founding Director a Persian workshop was acquired two years ural history had their basis in older collec- of the Industrial Museum, and himself a later for similar reasons.The Director of the tions formed by the University of chemist. Known as the Playfair Collection, day, Sir Robert Murdoch Smith, was a pio- Edinburgh, which can be placed on one it has links with the major eighteenth and neer in collecting Persian artefacts,but sole- side for the purposes of this essay.2 NMS nineteenth century figures in the teaching ly as examples of the metal craftsman’s art runs a number of museums beyond the of chemistry at the University of Edinburgh: and not for their scientific ingenuity.5 It was Royal Museum and Museum of Scotland in Joseph Black,William Cullen, and Thomas only with the appointment of a curator central Edinburgh: the Museum of Flight at Charles Hope.3 After Wilson’s unexpected- with a remit to collect historic scientific East Fortune, the Museum of Costume at ly early death,the direction of the museum’s instruments in 1968 that the collections Shambellie in Dumfriess-shire,the National collecting policy changed with its name, here grew with any purpose other than the War Museum of Scotland in Edinburgh which became the Edinburgh Museum of somewhat random fashion than hitherto, Castle, while the newest addition is the Science and Art, with the emphasis on the and that NMS began to publish information Museum of Scottish Country Life, in East latter.A laissez-faire attitude to collecting on the historic scientific instrument col- Kilbride, which opened in 2001 to great instruments meant that there was to be no lections.6 public acclaim. The Museum of Scotland – kick-start, such as that had by the London also received with enormous enthusiasm Science Museum in the form of the 1876 Scottish scientific instrumentation is a by press and public alike - opened in 1998, Loan Exhibition, which can be seen with broad enough category in itself.Anyway, and this is physically connected to the the benefit of hindsight as one of the first what is meant by an historic scientific Royal Museum in Chambers Street. It re- manifestations of collecting ‘antique’instru- instrument? It is a nineteenth century

4 Bulletin of the Scientific Instrument Society No. 78 (2003) term, coined, one imagines, possibly just to help museum curators. These include provenanced instruments designed by sci- entists; for example, this geodetic theodo- lite (see cover) was used for serious work by the amateur astronomer Lord Lindsay on the island of Mauritius in 1874 to measure one of the rare transits of the planet Venus across the Sun’s disc. Made by the famous London firm of Troughton & Simms, it was used by an eminent Scottish scientist, per- haps better known for his book collecting.7 The word scientist was first used to describe someone who did science as late as 1833:previously,science – or natural phi- losophy - was done by natural philosophers. The minting of the word had much to do with the professionalisation of the activity: by the mid-nineteenth century science was no longer solely the province of gentleman amateurs,as it had been in the past. Having said that,though,NMS also has instruments made for the luxury end of the market - none,alas,from the collection shown in the eighteenth century painting in a private Scottish collection, which shows the cabi- net belonging to an Aberdeenshire laird, together with the children from his second marriage.8 But the material shown in it - the mathematical instruments, the tele- scopes, the globes - were all items used to demonstrate the intellectual qualities of sen- sible and enlightened society,and NMS does have examples of these on display. NMS Fig. 2 Hispano-Moorish also collects what might be termed ‘ordi- astrolabe: Muhammad b. as- nary instruments’- those used by surveyors Saffâr, Cordova, 1026 A.D. and navigators,and teachers of physics;and Astrolabes of this date are there are contemporary illustrations of exceptionally rare. This is the these in use,such as the sketch of the great earliest surviving astrolabe survey of Scotland after the ’45, with made in Europe. It was made General Roy’s men chaining a piece of by an Islamic craftsman living ground on Rannoch Moor. Another exam- in Cordova, Spain. In the ple is the series of mariners painted on the Museum of Scotland, inv. no. Seamen’s Loft at Burntisland Parish Church 1959.62. Presented by J.H. Farr, in about 1620,holding various instruments, Edinburgh. Photograph by including a cross-staff and a mariner’s astro- Claus Jensen. labe.There are also carvings on old Scottish gravestones,which used the symbols of var- Fig. 3 Portuguese-made ious instruments to indicate the trade of mariner’s astrolabe, dating 9 particular individuals. from about 1550, owned by a The oldest historic scientific instrument in Dundee skipper,Andrew NMS is a planispheric astrolabe dated 1026 Smyton, who stamped it with (Fig.2).It was made by an Islamic craftsman both his name and date of in Cordova, Spain, before the Norman ownership, 1688. On loan from Conquest, when the science and learning the McManus Galleries, of the Greeks was being kept alive by the Dundee. Photograph by Claus Arabs. How did an eleventh-century Jensen. Hispano-Moorish precision instrument, which incidentally is the earliest surviving be used in Scotland came from abroad,long culating devices by astronomers and sur- signed and dated European-made instru- in advance of anything being made indige- veyors to solve problems of time, position ment, reach the collection in Edinburgh? nously. This is unsurprising, when the trav- and trigonometry:they were also outstand- The legend is that it was found in a junk els of the educated Scot before the 1680s ingly beautiful pieces of luxury craftsman- shop in Edinburgh’s Grassmarket in 1959, is taken into account, as much of that edu- ship. NMS has a total of eight astrolabes in and subsequently generously presented to cation was undertaken on the Continent. the collection, including the example from the Museum. Sadly, absolutely nothing is Perhaps the oldest (outside those pieces Cordova. The Fusoris example has been known of its previous history,nor why,how found on archaeological digs or through engraved at a later date on the rim with the or when it came Scotland.10 marine archaeology) is the unsigned Gothic name of the chorographer Robert Gordon astrolabe dating from the early fifteenth of Straloch,Aberdeenshire. Gordon’s major But how early had instruments arrived in century,attributed to the French workshop contribution to Scottish cartography was Scotland? The first scientific instruments to of Jean Fusoris. Astrolabes were used as cal- his extensive revision of Timothy Pont’s ear-

Bulletin of the Scientific Instrument Society No. 78 (2003) 5 lier manuscript surveys for publication by in 1972, quotes the 1662 remarks of the Sundials were clearly an item of conspicu- the Blaeus in Amsterdam. This astrolabe has Glasgow-born mathematician and almanac ous consumption for returning Scottish also undergone some alteration: two pro- compiler James Corss: landowners after the restoration of the jection plates have been added for the lati- monarchy in 1660. William Havart or I have oftentimes lamented with myself to see so tudes of Edinburgh and Straloch,and a date many Learned Mathematicians to arise in sundry Howard,‘Mathematician’ engraved a com- of 1597 has been engraved on the reverse. parts of the world, and so few to appear in our plex copper dial in 1662 for the latitude of The instrument was probably recondi- Native Country. In other things we are parallel Edinburgh.The London instrument maker tioned in that year for Gordon at the time with (I shall not say in a superlative degree far Henry Sutton engraved a ‘double horizon- of his early studies in Paris.11 above) other Nations; but in Arts and Sciences tal dial’ in 1660 for an unknown Scottish Mathematical, all exceed us. And had not that client,for his property north of the border: Instruments with provenances as long as thrice Noble and Illustrious Lord, viz. John Lord the instrument has been designed for 56 this are rarities, and in Scotland there sur- Nepper, Baron of Merchiston &c. preserved the degrees 30 minutes latitude, possibly near vive a mere handful. A Portuguese-made honour of our Nation by his admirable and more Dundee or Arbroath. Another undated than mortal invention of Logarithms, we should mariner’s astrolabe,dating from about 1550, example by an engraver and diesinker at was at one point owned by a Dundee skip- have been buried in oblivion,in the memories of Forraign Nations.17 the Scottish Mint named ‘Jacobus Clarke’ is per,Andrew Smyton (Fig.3),who stamped it also in the collections at the National with both his name and date of ownership, David Bryden, formerly curator of the his- 12 Museums of Scotland: further examples of 1688. It belongs to Dundee Art Gallery toric scientific instrument collections at the these makers’ work have been noted.21 A and Museum,and they have kindly lent it to Royal Scottish Museum,felt that the dearth number of Oughtred’s double horizontal NMS, so that delegates on this SIS visit of Scots of European standing in mathe- dials designed for Scottish latitudes have would be able to see it: it is on display matics and astronomy meant that ‘the been noticed in the past thirty years, some upstairs in the first case, along with two instrument-maker’s trade could not become of them constructed by engravers resident other Indian astrolabes and an armillary economically viable,except within an estab- in Scotland, and the original theory that sphere.The group of three early London- lished framework of scientific endeavour, they had all been made by London crafts- made instruments now at the University of which could provide a market for his goods men from a particular trade succession now St. Andrews, Scotland’s first university, and skills … suggesting only a limited infras- looks very doubtful. founded in 1412 – two by Humphrey Cole, tructure of scientific activity in Scotland at a large astrolabe dated 1575 and a nautical that time.’18 In the thirty-odd years since he Sundials continued to be purchased after hemisphere dated 1582, and one by Elias wrote this, his somewhat pessimistic state- this early period, and by the early nine- Allen,a large mariner’s astrolabe dated 1616 ment has been only partly modified by fur- teenth century, horizontal brass sundials – may have formed part of the collection ther investigation and the discovery of were being retailed by the major Edinburgh assembled by the Aberdeen-born more extant instruments. and Glasgow firms, such as the example astronomer James Gregory, in his attempt probably ordered by Sir Andrew Agnew for in 1673 to gather second-hand equipment When did instrument-making come to Lochnaw Castle in Wigtownshire from for an observatory at the University of St. Scotland? In contrast to the rest of Europe, Alexander Adie, the Edinburgh instrument Andrews, where he was appointed to the maker, between 1822 and 1835. A final 13 this activity appeared really quite late. new chair of astronomy. SIS delegates will Humphrey Cole, first native-born English resurgence of the art form occurred in cen- see all of these on the visit to St.Andrews. instrument maker, taught by immigrant tral Scotland in the 1840s, with slate sundi- This proposed observatory was abandoned Flemings in the last days of the Tudor als showing the time in a variety of exotic at Gregory’s early death: but just who the dynasty,has already been mentioned.A com- locations, apparently constructed by a sin- original clients for such large and presti- gle specialist itinerant maker named pendium, signed by him and dated 1575, is 22 gious instruments might have been has on display upstairs,and has been in the col- Richard Melville. In 1999,a sundial spon- never been resolved.Gregory as inventor of lection of the Society of Antiquaries of sored by the late Earl of Perth, a former the Gregorian telescope, and as one of the Scotland since the late eighteenth centu- Trustee of NMS,was carved into the south- early teachers of Newtonian philosophy, ry.19 Even so, instruments constructed in west wall of the Museum of Scotland, thus was an important figure, but ‘his compara- these islands dating before the Restoration continuing an ancient tradition. tive isolation from his mathematical con- of the Stuarts in 1660 are very unusual. The The effect of the cultural and social diffu- temporaries, his reluctance to publish his earliest signed instrument made in Scotland work, and finally his early death, all con- sion of a scientific culture during the peri- is, in fact, undated. It went through the od of the long eighteenth century has spired to restrict his contribution to math- London salerooms in 1972, where it was ematics.’14 Several other pieces dating from received considerable attention from his- spotted by one of my predecessors,Allen torians of science during the last thirty the late seventeenth century remain at the Simpson. Robert Davenport had served his University of St.Andrews.All are made by years. Although difficult to quantify, the apprenticeship with the great London understanding of scientific principles,it has makers and designers who were based in instrument maker Elias Allen, who was London,and it is clear that it was to London been argued, may have been associated commissioned by William Oughtred to with industrial advance.The audience for makers that Gregory had taken his cus- make both his ‘Circles of Proportion’ (the tom.15 One further piece has been in the science throughout Britain grew enor- earliest logarithmic calculating scale,which mously during the eighteenth century. The collection at St.Andrews since the seven- is on the reverse of this instrument) and the teenth century: an unsigned 12-inch diam- early itinerant lecturers, spreading the horizontal sundial, which used Oughtred’s Newtonian gospel, found eager listeners eter dip circle – used to measure the angle form of stereographic projection. of variation in the Earth’s magnetic field – first in London, and subsequently in the Davenport was working in Edinburgh by provinces.23 Itinerant natural philosophy inscribed ‘Archibaldi Arskini Armigeri 1647, but it is not known for how long he Londini’.Presented by a former student,the lecturers appeared in Edinburgh as early as stayed. It is the only instrument known 1721, when John Theophilus Desaguliers maker of the instrument and its use at such with his signature.20 This is considered so an early date remains unknown.16 visited Edinburgh in connection with his important, that, like Robert Gordon’s astro- involvement in freemasonry, but while These examples give some idea of the labe and some items associated with John there he also assisted the Town Council by paucity of instrumentation in Scotland dur- Napier, they are all displayed together in a getting the air out of the water supply ing the seventeenth century. Indeed, the case on the ground floor of the Museum of pipes. Desaguliers was perhaps the most first monograph on the subject, published Scotland. important populariser of Newtonian phi-

6 Bulletin of the Scientific Instrument Society No. 78 (2003) losophy for the layman of his generation.In 1724, the Swede Mårtin Triewald and his English friend, John Thorold, together gave a course of twenty-four lectures in Edinburgh, three a week, from December of that year,which used ‘numerous and cost- ly Apparatus.’ An engineer and natural philosopher,Triewald had been in London in the spring of 1719,and had attended the physical experiments of Desaguliers in the dome of St Paul’s cathedral. He took his ‘comprehensive collection of scientific instruments’ back to Sweden with him in 1726, and an inventory list was made in 1736 when 327 items were presented to the University of Lund.24 The only recog- nisably Scottish piece was a 12-foot tele- scope signed by ‘William Barclai’ of Edinburgh,who can be identified as William Barclay,an Edinburgh maker contemporary with James Short, the renowned maker of reflecting telescopes.25 Clearly the market demand here was not yet large,although it was challenged by the younger generation.The later eighteenth- century lecture-demonstrators, of whom Benjamin Martin and James Ferguson are the most frequently cited, encouraged the continuing interest in natural philosophy through the spread of literacy by publish- ing their own populist works. Ferguson, a farm labourer’s son from Banffshire, made mechanical models while keeping sheep. He mastered the elements of surveying, horology,astronomy and portraiture after a fairly rudimentary education at Keith Grammar School. Under the patronage of Colin Maclaurin, professor of mathematics Fig. 4 Newcomen engine repaired by James Watt, in the Hunterian at Aberdeen and subsequently Edinburgh, Museum, Glasgow. Photograph by Mike Cowham. he went to London in 1748, where he lec- tured before the Royal Society and in due course was elected a Fellow in 1763. Ferguson was a skilled designer of clocks ment trade was first demonstrated by an less exotic locations.30 Scots took Short’s and astronomical models, and he lectured exhibition in 1968 entitled ‘James Short and instruments with them when they went throughout the country using demonstra- his Telescopes’, which led to further pub- abroad, and in one instance, one telescope tion apparatus which he had made.He also lished and unpublished work.James Short is returned from Jamaica to Glasgow. This is wrote and published assiduously,expound- an important figure in Scottish instrument now in the Hunterian Museum, at the ing Newtonian ideas at a popular level on making:he proved to be extremely skilful,a University of Glasgow.31 all these topics.26 Other instrument mak- good networker and an astute businessman, The link between instrument makers and ers later marketed his designs:for instance, and it has been said that ‘his career presents the natural philosophy class at Edinburgh NMS has in its collections a splendid pyrom- the almost unblemished success story of became established in the second half of eter and a mechanical powers apparatus, the archetypal lad o’pairts’.29 the eighteenth century, when John Miller both retailed by the London firm of W.& S. Short left for London in 1738, because the senior in 1754 manufactured and adjusted Jones.27 lure of London as the scientific market- two large high-precision capacity measures The eminent historian of science Roger place for the rest of the world was too for the County of Stirling raised from the Emerson has demonstrated that the Scottish strong. There he joined an élite corps of ancient Scots pint.This work was carried Enlightenment was a predominantly urban instrument makers who were also Fellows out under the supervision of Dr John phenomenon, and was centred around the of the Royal Society,and to some extent he Stewart, who was professor of natural phi- three largest cities - Edinburgh,Glasgow and bows out of the Scottish Enlightenment. losophy between 1742 and 1759.32 These Aberdeen - and in all these cases the uni- However, it is worth pointing out that the investigations reveal another aspect of versities of each city had a major role to Scottish universities all purchased examples Scottish Enlightenment thinking: the con- play. (Scotland’s most ancient university at of his telescopes,either from him when he cern for antiquarian truth, particularly St.Andrews was situated in a town which was working in Edinburgh, or later, when where it was revealed in surviving artefacts had not flourished after its great medieval in London: or in the case of Aberdeen, sec- and legislation. and ecclesiastical past.) Recent work has ond-hand, after his death. By that time, he The elder Miller apparently went on to looked at the history of these institutions, had sold over 1300 telescopes – of which become an assistant in class demonstrations their patronage systems,their teaching and he made only the optical components – to to a later professor of natural philosophy at networks of knowledge and friendship.28 customers in St. Petersburg, Uppsala, Paris Edinburgh,John Robison,who was appoint- Interest by curators in the Edinburgh instru- and Harvard Observatories,as well as other

Bulletin of the Scientific Instrument Society No. 78 (2003) 7 tors. While scientists often ordered their specialist experimental apparatus from London, there were many examples of instrument makers working locally, in par- ticular for teaching institutions:for instance, James Crichton of Glasgow produced equipment for the Andersonian Institution (later the University of Strathclyde),includ- ing a handsome air pump, which delegates will see at the Collins Gallery; and John King – who made a travelling demonstra- tion electrical kit,which is upstairs - worked closely with Professor Patrick Copland at Aberdeen University. Recent work by Roger Emerson has shown that the way in which Glasgow professors obtained their academic positions was due in large measure to the machinations of enlightened, but politically active, patrons such as Archibald Campbell,Lord Islay,sub- sequently third Duke of Argyll.Emerson has produced a list of twenty Glasgow University appointments dating between 1728 and 1761,made with the ‘Approbation of Lord Ilay’.38 One of Islay’s appointees was Alexander Wilson, originally a typefounder with the renowned Foulis Press. Islay had not sup- ported the candidature of John Anderson – an expert in Oriental languages – for the chair of natural philosophy, and when Anderson was appointed, Islay ‘got a chair created for his protégé Alexander Wilson, who shared his interests in chemistry and who had long supplied him with scientific instruments.’Wilson was appointed first professor of practical astronomy in 1760, Fig. 5 General view of instruments used by Lord Kelvin with in prominent place the har- and had been making instruments since the monic analyser.In the Hunterian Museum. Photograph by Mike Cowham. 1730s when he had assisted George Martine in his experiments on heat: these instru- ments would have been thermometers and ed in 1774, and who can be seen in a por- which survive, the surveying instruments barometers.A single stick barometer signed trait by Henry Raeburn,along with the uni- produced by Adie in the first half of the cen- ‘Alex. Wilson’ has been recorded in a versity’s telescope made by James Short. tury seem to represent a mainstay of the Continental collection,dated 1774;and the The telescope itself is now on the gallery firm’s business, as it had under Miller’.35 National Museums of Scotland have a ther- upstairs. Miller was the first of a family firm Miller had begun in business just at the end mometer signed by Wilson and dated 1782, of scientific instrument makers which dom- of a period of rapid agricultural change,dur- which came from the natural philosophy inated the Edinburgh scene for over a cen- ing which the number of land surveyors class at the University of Edinburgh.Wilson tury and a half: his son, John Miller junior, working in Scotland increased from about had also been in a short-lived partnership his nephew Alexander Adie,and Adie’s four ten to about seventy.36 That there remained in 1758 with James Watt and Joseph Black sons have been described as: a growing and diverse dilettante market in (another of Islay’s Glasgow University place- Edinburgh was demonstrated by the grow- talented and creative… Although it may ulti- men).Both Wilson and Watt supplied Black ing demand for domestic – as well as spe- mately be concluded that Edinburgh was no with thermometers during the 1760s while cial-purpose – barometers, globes, and spe- more than a provincial centre of instrument pro- he was still at Glasgow doing his pioneer- cialised drawing instruments aimed at the duction dominated from England, the history of ing work on the nature of heat: Wilson the Adie business makes it clear that such a judge- amateur market.37 ment needs to be heavily qualified.33 offered to produce thermometers for By the beginning of the nineteenth century, Black’s students, priced at a guinea or a Much of the history of the Adie business the four major Scottish cities, Edinburgh, guinea and a half in 1768.39 illustrates the close co-operation between Glasgow, Aberdeen and Dundee, had an James Watt,seen in an impossibly romantic members of the family and their patrons, established market for customers of scien- light, musing on the possibilities of the often university professors seeking special tific instruments.These customers either model steam engine, in the retrospective apparatus, such as the experimental jewel used the instruments in teaching or in their portrait by J.E.Lauder (which is now in the lens microscope, probably made at the work:surveyors required sighting and mea- National Gallery of Scotland), is an interna- request of David Brewster; or acquiring suring instruments to pursue their busi- tional name to conjure with. John Gardner demonstration pieces for the classroom, nesses, and architects needed drawing the elder began his career as an instrument such as an unusual cometarium, made by instruments. The growing ports of maker apprenticed to James Watt, whose John Miller.34 In addition, judging by the Greenock and Leith had their own suppli- senior journeyman he became in 1769. range and number of surveying pieces ers of nautical instruments for local naviga- Watt’s own fame is as an engineer,and prin-

8 Bulletin of the Scientific Instrument Society No. 78 (2003) is devoted to the later work of Lord Kelvin, with particular emphasis on his pioneering work in electrical instrumentation (Fig.5). Robert Dick, first professor of natural phi- losophy, was appointed in 1726, and a list of departmental apparatus survives, dated 1727.One or two early items,such as a sev- enteenth-century compound microscope, are on display.43 John Anderson was pro- fessor of natural philosophy at the University of Glasgow from 1757 to 1796: after his death,his Will provided money and apparatus for ‘Anderson’s Institute’, which became the Technical College and subse- quently the University of Strathclyde.A sub- stantial collection of instruments survives at the University of Strathclyde, and some items belonged to Anderson himself.A num- ber of the more interesting early items in both the collections were made or designed by a local instrument maker named James Crichton: four thermometers with his sig- nature are to be found in the surviving apparatus of Lavoisier, in Paris; he was involved with careful precision work in cre- ating the local Glasgow weights and mea- sures standards in 1826, and his work and Fig. 6 Reflecting telescope by James Short and microscope by Andrew Ross used by David patrons evidently warrant further investi- Brewster, at the University of St.Andrews. Photograph by Peter Louwman. gation.44 cipally as the improver of the steam engine The recent literature about Joseph Black, St.Andrews, its population and reputation (Fig. 4). However, he trained as a scientific whether based in Glasgow or Edinburgh, in decline after the Reformation, nonethe- instrument maker,initially in Glasgow,then has been large, and much of it has looked less acquired some important pieces of for a year in London in the workshop of at his use of instruments and apparatus,par- apparatus under the professorship of David John Morgan before returning north: NMS ticularly that undertaken by Robert Young,during the mid-eighteenth century. has a surveyor’s compass engraved with Anderson,at one time a curator here at the These included a reflecting telescope made Morgan’s signature. Watt was allowed by National Museums of Scotland.Amongst sur- by James Short (Fig.6),and a Grand Orrery Glasgow University to work as a mathe- viving artefacts is Black’s famous balance, by Benjamin Cole of Fleet Street, London. matical instrument maker on its premises with which he made some of the first quan- Other material which survived until the between 1757 and 1763,and he continued titative measurements in experimental mid-nineteenth century was listed in an to trade in Glasgow until 1771:a barometer chemistry. In fact, by looking at the teach- inventory by a later Professor of natural phi- in the NMS collection is a very rare piece ing of chemistry at the University of losophy,William Swan, in 1859. The visit surviving from the instrument-making peri- Edinburgh between 1713 and 1858, there will be quite special, as St.Andrews od of James Watt’s career.40 Watt appears Anderson was able to construct a fascinat- remains a small medieval town, and is real- to have trained up John Gardner not only ing and continuous thread of the use of ly very attractive.45 as an instrument maker but also, like him- chemical equipment through six successive Further north, at the two universities in self, as a land surveyor. Another domestic professorships,and link this with important Aberdeen, it is clear that Newtonianism barometer was made as a piece of furniture surviving apparatus. The equally famous found a footing early on,as instrumentation by John Gardner, and like other Scottish glassware, probably produced locally in 42 and the teaching of natural philosophy barometers of this date, it has the word Leith,also survives. Anderson’s book,per- went in tandem from an early date.A large ‘Serene’ on its register plates instead of the haps, is the model which instrument histo- equatorial instrument, originally made more mundane ‘Very Dry’. Gardner set up rians or historians of science should strive Sisson and re-divided by Ramsden (Fig. 7), independently, becoming assistant to the after: only one other recent work on was presented by the third Earl of Bute to official City of Glasgow land surveyor in Scottish instrumentation has come near it the Castlehill Observatory in 1781: alas, it 1789,and succeeding him in 1792 as well as – Paul Wood’s 1993 book, The Aberdeen now lacks its optics.Delegates will see it on sustaining a thriving instrument business. Enlightenment: the Arts Curriculum in the the visit to Aberdeen. However, much of However,in the next seventy-five years this Eighteenth Century,which discusses natu- the surviving material at Aberdeen is from a family firm went bankrupt four times, ral philosophy teaching at Aberdeen, relatively late date, particularly from the demonstrating that the instrument trade although no apparatus there survives from time that Patrick Copland taught natural was a risky business venture,involving large before 1769. philosophy at Marischal College, between investments of capital held in stock,which, 1775 and 1822, when he was assisted by in a period of economic slump, might not In contrast, only two recent papers have been written about the teaching of natural John King. The curator at Aberdeen, John sell. The technical competence of any Reid,has done much to make this Aberdeen instrument maker might be put at risk philosophy at Glasgow at this earlier peri- od; the later glory left behind by William material available to a wider audience through poor business practice. Only with through his publications, and John will be changes in company law, particularly with Thomson, Lord Kelvin, has perhaps over- shadowed the beginnings. However, dele- there as our guide throughout the visit to the introduction of limited liability, were Aberdeen.46 businesses like that of the Gardners’able to gates shall see what there is, and it will be become more secure.41 worth the visit to the Hunterian Museum in In this thumbnail whistlestop tour around the University of Glasgow.An entire gallery Scotland’s significant historical instrumen-

Bulletin of the Scientific Instrument Society No. 78 (2003) 9 Society of Antiquaries of Scotland, 1780-1980 (Edinburgh, 1981). 2. See Charles D.Waterston, Collections in Context: the museum of the Royal Society of Edinburgh and the inception of a national museum for Scotland (Edinburgh, 1997). 3.R.G.W.Anderson,The Playfair Collection and the Teaching of Chemistry at the University of Edinburgh 1713-1858 (Edinburgh, 1978). 4. For which, see the articles in Journal of the History of Collections, 7 (1995), devoted to the his- tory of collecting historic scientific instruments. 5. For the ‘Barlow’ globe, see Emilie Savage-Smith, Islamicate Celestial Globes: their history, construc- tion and use (Washington,D.C.,1985),pp.230-231; for Murdoch Smith’s collecting activities,see Jennifer Scarce, ‘Persian Art through the Eyes of Major- General Robert Murdoch Smith KCMG’,in J.Calder, ed., The Enterprising Scot: Scottish adventure and achievement (Edinburgh, 1986), pp. 131-138. 6. For example, D.J. Bryden, Scottish Scientific Instrument-makers 1600-1900 (Edinburgh, 1972); T.N. Clarke,A.D. Morrison-Low and A.D.C. Simpson, Brass & Glass: scientific instrument making work- shops in Scotland (Edinburgh, 1989), and the essay on which this introduction was based. 7.See Angus Macdonald and A.D.Morrison-Low,eds., A Heavenly Library: treasures from the Royal Observatory’s Crawford Collection (Edinburgh, 1994), esp. p. 60. 8. Illustrated in James Holloway, Patrons and Painters: art in Scotland 1650-1760 (Edinburgh, 1989), p. 79. To be discussed by A.D. Morrison-Low, ‘Sir Archibald Grant’s Cabinet of Curiosities’ at the XXII Scientific Instrument Commission’s Symposium, Newport News, October 2003. 9.The image of the men chaining on Rannoch Moor Fig. 7 Equatorial is by Paul Sandby and is reproduced as the cover of by Sisson, later Yolande O’Donoghue, William Roy 1726-1790, re-divided by Pioneer of the Ordnance Survey (London, 1976); Ramsden, at the the Burntisland paintings are discussed and repro- duced in A.D. Morrison-Low, ‘Early Navigational University of Instruments in Scotland: icons and survivals’, in Aberdeen. R.G.W.Anderson, J.A. Bennett and W.F.Ryan, eds., Photograph by Making Instruments Count: essays on historic sci- Howard Dawes. entific instruments presented to Gerard L’Estrange Turner (Aldershot, 1993), pp. 218-231; images on gravestones are discussed by Betty Wisher, tation more questions have probably been been made and acquired elsewhere – prin- Understanding Scottish graveyards (Edinburgh, raised than answered: this essay has con- cipally in London – it must be apparent 1990). centrated more on the university towns of from what you have heard this morning 10. See Macdonald and Morrison-Low, op. cit. (note Glasgow and Edinburgh than on Aberdeen that by the beginning of the nineteenth 7), p. 24. or St.Andrews;it has not really explored the century there was a small but strongly-root- 11. Ibid., p. 25. trade in the commercial centres of Dundee, ed indigenous trade in Scotland. Clustered 12.See Alan Stimson,The Mariner’s Astrolabe: a sur- Leith,or Greenock;and through pressure of around her universities, and in her larger vey of known, surviving sea astrolabes (Utrecht, time and space the individuals who were centres of growing population, this wide- 1988), pp. 60-61. active in the Borders, or the South-West ranging and versatile craft was to survive 13. For the Allen instrument, see Stimson, op. cit. have been neglected. For instance, at the for some time to come. Although instru- (note 12), pp. 78-79; for the Cole instruments see end of the eighteenth century,John Gibson ments were not exclusively scientific, they Silke Ackermann (ed.), Humphrey Cole: mint, mea- of Kelso was given a glowing write-up in were useful in a range of occupations and surement and maps in Elizabethan England the Statistical Account for his wonderful diversions,and sometimes they can also be (London, 1998), pp. 33-38 and G. L’E. Turner, telescopes, one of which was presented to beautiful. Please enjoy the SIS visit, and the Elizabethan Instrument Makers: the origins of the Catherine the Great of Russia. NMS has range of instruments with Scottish connec- London trade in precision instrument making (Oxford, 2000), pp. 149-154 and pp. 166-168. acquired a microscope which, although tions that can be shown to you. retailed by him, and carrying his signature, 14. A.D.C. Simpson, ‘James Gregory and the 47 Notes and References Reflecting Telescope’, Journal of the History of was probably made in London. There are, Astronomy, 23 (1992), pp. 77-92. of course, other similar examples of the 1.Partial accounts can be found in R.G.W.Anderson, 15.These include:an unsigned example in brass of a ‘Museums in the Making: the origins and develop- ingenious mechanic active in Scotland: horary quadrant ‘the Panorganon, or a Universall ment of the national collections’in J.Calder,ed., The James Veitch of Inchbonny, which is just Instrument’ described in 1672 by William Wealth of a Nation in the National Museums of outside Jedburgh, or Thomas Morton of Leybourne: see E.G.R.Taylor, The Mathematical Scotland (Edinburgh and Glasgow, 1989), pp. 1-17; Kilmarnock, near Ayr.48 Although much of Practitioners of Tudor and Stuart England, 1485- and for the museum of the Society of Antiquaries of the instrumentation used in Scotland dur- 1714 (Cambridge, 1954), pp. 230-1 and p. 384; a Scotland, A.S. Bell, ed., The Scottish Antiquarian series of three clocks by Joseph Knibb:see R.A.Lee, ing the long eighteenth century must have Tradition: essays to mark the bicentenary of the The Knibb Family Clockmakers (Byfleet, Surrey,

10 Bulletin of the Scientific Instrument Society No. 78 (2003) 1964), pp.20, 154-7; a new plate for the Cole astro- R.G.W.Anderson and A.D.C. Simpson, Edinburgh & ‘Joseph Black: an outline biography’, in labe engraved by John Marke for the latitude 56º 25’; Medicine: a commemorative catalogue of the exhi- A.D.C.Simpson, Joseph Black 1728-1799, a com- and an example of William Oughtred’s double hori- bition… (Edinburgh, 1976). memorative symposium (Edinburgh, 1982), pp. 7- zontal dial by Hilkiah Bedford:for William Oughtred, 29. Clarke et al, op. cit. (note 6), p. 1. 12;R.G.W.Anderson,‘Instruments and Apparatus’,in see A.J.Turner,‘William Oughtred,Richard Delamain C.A.Russell,ed.,Recent developments in the History 30. D.J. Bryden, James Short and His Telescopes and the Horizontal Instrument in Seventeenth of Chemistry (London,1985),pp.217-237;J.G.Fyffe (Edinburgh, 1968), pp.13-16, 24-25. Century England’, Annali dell’Istituto e Museo di and R.G.W.Anderson, Joseph Black (London,1992); Storia di Scienza Firenze, 6 (1981), pp. 99-125; for 31.D.J.Bryden,‘The Jamaican Observatories of Colin R.G.W.Anderson,‘A source for ‘18th-century Chemical Hilkiah Bedford, see A.J.Turner,‘A Note on the Life Campbell,FRS and Alexander Macfarlane,FRS,’Notes Glass’, in Dragoni et al, op. cit. (note 41), pp. 47-52; of Hilkiah Bedford’, Bulletin of the Scientific and Records of the Royal Society of London, 24 R.G.W.Anderson,‘Joseph Black and his Chemical Instrument Society, No. 9 (1986), pp. 3-5. Further (1970), pp. 261-272. Furnace’,in Anderson et al., op.cit. (note 9),pp.118- London makers are mentioned in Gregory’s corre- 32.A.D.C. Simpson,‘“Handle with Care”: handling 126;R.G.W.Anderson,‘Joseph Black’,in D.Daiches,P. spondence: Herbert Westren Turnbull, ed., James warnings on early scientific instruments and two Jones and J. Jones, eds., A Hotbed of Genius: the Gregory Tercentenary Memorial Volume (London, early Scottish grain measures’, Bulletin of the Scottish Enlightenment, 1730-90 (Edinburgh,1986), 1939). Scientific Instrument Society,No.30 (1991),3-4.This pp. 92-114. 16. D.W.Waters, The Art of Navigation in England whole area is discussed in the chapter ‘Science and 43. J.T. Lloyd,‘Item ane Shipe Skin: an account of in Elizabethan and Early Stuart Times (London, Measurement’ in R.D. Connor,A.D.C. Simpson and early experimentation in the Natural Philosophy 1958), pl. 63. A.D. Morrison-Low, Metts, Merchants and Markets: Department’, The College Courant: Journal of the the weights and measures of Scotland (Edinburgh, 17.J.Corss,Uranoscopia: the Contemplation of the Glasgow University Graduates Association, 21,no. forthcoming). Heavens in a Perpetual Speculum, or General 43 (1969), 5-9; Peter Swinbank, ‘Experimental Prognostication for Ever (Edinburgh,1662),sig A3r, 33. Clarke et al, op. cit. (note 6), p. 25. Science in the University of Glasgow at the Time of quoted in Bryden, op. cit. (note 6), p. 1. 34.The jewel lens microscope is discussed by R.H. Joseph Black’, in Simpson, op. cit. (note 42), pp. 23- 35; for Kelvin, see G. Green and J.T. Lloyd, Kelvin’s 18. Ibid., p. 2. Nuttall, Microscopes from the Frank Collection 1800-1860 (Jersey,1979),pp.34-35. This collection instruments and the Kelvin Museum (Glasgow, 19.Ackermann, op. cit. (note 13), pp. 61-64;Turner, – except item 42 – was acquired by NMS in 1979. 1970). See also the chapter,‘James White and Lord op. cit. (note 13), pp. 158-159. The cometarium is described in Macdonald and Kelvin’, in Clarke et al., op. cit. (note 6), 252-280. 20. D.J. Bryden, ‘Scotland’s Earliest Surviving Morrison-Low, op. cit. (note 7), pp. 36-37. 44.A.M. Campbell, Catalogue of the Collection of Calculating Device: Robert Davenport’s Circles of 35. Clarke et al, op. cit. (note 6), p. 34. Historic Scientific Instruments in the University of Proportion of c.1650’, Scottish Historical Review, 36.Ian Adams,‘The Land Surveyor and His Influence Strathclyde (Glasgow,1980);for John Anderson,see 55 (1976), pp. 54-60; for Oughtred, see Turner, op. James Muir, John Anderson, Pioneer of Technical cit. (note 15). on the Scottish Rural Landscape’, Scottish Geographical Magazine, 84 (1968), pp. 248-255; Education and the College He Founded (Glasgow, 21.D.J.Bryden,‘“Mr Clerk the Graver”;a biographical Adams, ‘Economic Process and the Scottish 1950),pp.62-70;John Cable,‘Early Scottish Science: study in the cultural infra-structure of early modern Surveyor’,Imago Mundi, 27 (1975),pp.13-18;Sarah the vocational provision’, Annals of Science, 30 Scotland’,Review of Scottish Culture 11 (1998-99), Bendall, Dictionary of Land Surveyors and Local (1976), pp. 179-199; John Butt, John Anderson’s pp.13-31 Map-Makers of Great Britain and Ireland, 1530- Legacy: the University of Strathclyde and its 22. Clarke et al, op. cit. (note 6), 68-69 for the Adie 1850 (London, 1997), Introduction. antecedents, 1796-1996 (East Linton, 1996), and sundial;and ‘Richard Melville,Maker of Sundials’,pp. Paul Wood,‘Jolly Jack Phosphorus in the Venice of 37.A.D. Morrison-Low, Scottish Barometers, forth- 210-216. the North;or,who was John Anderson?’,in Hook and coming; A.D.C. Simpson, ‘Globe Production in Sher, op. cit. (note 28), pp. 111-132. 23. See, for instance, Roy Porter, Enlightenment: Scotland in the Period 1770-1830’, Der Britain and the Creation of the Modern World Globusfreund: Journal for the Study of Globes and 45.For the orrery,see Macdonald and Morrison-Low, (London,2000);Margaret C.Jacob,Scientific Culture Related Instruments, No. 35-37 (Wien, 1987), pp. op. cit. (note 7), 40; for the telescope, see Bryden, and the Making of the Industrial West (Oxford, 21-32; A.D.C. Simpson, ‘An Edinburgh Intrigue: op. cit. (note 30), 8; E.M. Wray, ed., Catalogue of 1997); Larry Stewart, The Rise of Public Science: Brewster’s Society of Arts and the pantograph dis- Apparatus in the Museum of the Natural Rhetoric, Technology, and Natural Philosophy in pute’,Book of the Old Edinburgh Club,new series, Philosophy Class in the United Colleges of St Newtonian Britain, 1660-1750 (Cambridge: 1 (1991), pp. 47-73. Salvator and St Leonard, St Andrews, prepared by Cambridge University Press,1992);the first number W.Swan, LLD, May 1880 (St.Andrews, 1983); and 38. Emerson, op. cit. (note 28), p.104, and Emerson, of the British Journal for the History of Science 28 also E.M. Wray, Historical Scientific Instruments op. cit. (note 28), p. 23. part I (1995) is devoted to this topic. from the Collection of the Department of Physics, 39. Bert Bolle, Barometers in Beeld (Lochem- 24.Stewart,op.cit. (note 23),pp.235,362-363;Svante University of St. Andrews: A Guide to Selected Poperinge, 1983), p. 30; A.D. Morrison-Low, ‘The Lindqvist, Technology on Trial: the Introduction of Exhibits (St.Andrews, 1983). Provenance of the Natural Philosophy Collection at Steam Power Technology into Sweden, 1715-1736 46. John S. Reid, ‘Eighteenth-century Scottish the University of Edinburgh’(unpublished M Sc dis- (Uppsala, 1984), pp. 205-212. University Instruments: the remarkable Professor sertation, University of Leicester, 1987), p. 29; Copland’, Bulletin of the Scientific Instrument 25. J.G.Tandberg, Die Triewaldsche Sammlung am Anderson,op.cit.(note 3),21;and Roger L.Emerson Society, No. 24 (1990), pp. 2-8; John S.Reid, ‘The Physikal.Institut der Universität zu Lund und die and Paul Wood, ‘Science and Enlightenment in Castlehill Observatory,Aberdeen’, Journal for the Original-Luftpumpe Guerickes (Lund,1920),pp.3- Glasgow,1690-1802’in Charles W.J.Withers and Paul History of Astronomy, 13 (1982), pp. 84-96; John S. 6,25.My thanks to Dr Olov Amelin for this reference. Wood, eds., Science and Medicine in the Scottish Reid,‘Patrick Copland 1748-1822: aspects of his life 26. Ebenezer Henderson, Life of James Ferguson, Enlightenment (East Linton, 2002), pp. 79-142, esp. and times at Marischal College’,Aberdeen University F.R.S., in a brief autobiographical account, and pp. 105-107 Review, 50 (1984-85), p. 359; John S. Reid,‘A Select further extended memoir (Edinburgh, London and 40. For a recent evaluation of Watt and his life, see Clock’,Antiquarian Horology,13 (1981),pp.45-50; Glasgow, 1867); and John R. Millburn, Wheelwright Christine MacLeod,‘James Watt, Heroic Invention Paul B.Wood,The Aberdeen Enlightenment: the Arts of the Heavens. The life & work of James Ferguson, and the Idea of the Industrial Revolution’,in Maxine Curriculum in the Eighteenth Century (Aberdeen, F.R.S. (London, 1988). Berg and Kristine Bruland, eds., Technological 1993), p. 14. 27.A.D.C.Simpson,‘“La plus brilliante collection qui Revolutions in Europe: Historical Perspectives 47. A.D. Morrison-Low,‘John Gibson, Optician in existe au monde”:a lost collection of the nineteenth (Cheltenham, 1998), pp. 96-116; Richard L. Hills, Kelso,“a man of genius”’, forthcoming. century’, Journal of the History of Collections, 7 ‘James Watt’s Barometers’, Bulletin of the Scientific (1995), pp. 187-196. Instrument Society, No.60 (1999),pp.5-10.See also 48. Clarke et al, op. cit. (note 6), pp. 190-196, for Morton; and pp. 16-24, for Veitch. 28.Amongst these, see Roger Emerson, Professors, R.L.Hills,James Watt Volume I:his time in Scotland, Patronage and Politics: the Aberdeen universities 1736-1774 (Ashbourne, 2002). in the eighteenth century (Aberdeen, 1992); Roger 41. Clarke et al, op. cit. (note 6), pp. 164-179;A.D. Emerson,‘Politics and the Glasgow Professors,1690- Morrison-Low,‘The Road to Ruin? Bankruptcy and Author’s address: 1800’,in Andrew Hook and Richard B.Sher,eds.,The some legal consequences for the instrument maker Curator of Historic Scientific Instruments th Glasgow Enlightenment (East Linton, 1995), 21-39; in 19 century Britain’, in Giorgio Dragoni, Anita Department of Social and Technological Jack Morrell,‘The Edinburgh Town Council and its McConnell and Gerard L’E.Turner ,eds.,Proceedings University 1717-1766,’in R.G.W.Anderson and A.D.C. of the XI Scientific Instrument Symposium, History Simpson, eds., The Early Years of the Edinburgh Bologna 1991 (Bologna, 1994), pp. 53-59. Edinburgh EH1 1JF Medical School (Edinburgh, 1976), p. 12. See also 42. Anderson, op. cit. (note 3); R.G.W.Anderson, e-mail: [email protected]

Bulletin of the Scientific Instrument Society No. 78 (2003) 11 SIS Annual Study Conference to Scotland, 29th April-3rd May 2003

Tuesday Morning, 29th April 2003 The Royal Museum and Museum of Scotland, Edinburgh The delegates gathered in the Royal Museum, a magnificent building first opened to the public in 1866.The Main Hall (Fig. 1) is a three-storied masterpiece of Victorian cast iron and plate glass con- struction,spacious,elegant,and full of light. The galleries are entered from balconies overlooking the Hall,and they house inter- national collections of Decorative Arts, Science and Industry,Archaeology,and the Natural World, in short a veritable modern Kunstkammer.The Museum houses one of the major collections of scientific instru- ments in The British Isles, and Scottish instrument makers are particularly well represented. The adjacent Museum of Scotland (Fig. 2), in return, is a dramatic modern sandstone building with its strik- Fig. 1 Spectacular Main Hall of ing tower situated at the corner of the Royal Museum of Scotland. Chambers Street. This museum opened Photograph by David Thompson. quite recently, in 1998, and it presents the history of Scotland - its land,its people and their achievements, some aspects of sci- Fig. 2 Architectural detail of the ence inclusive. striking National Museum of Scotland building. Photograph We were welcomed by Dr Alison Morrison- by David Thompson. Low, Francis Yeo, Rachael Dempster, Maureen Kerr, and Dr Allen Simpson all of whom guided and accompanied us in a most inspiring,helpful,and hospitable way during the entire SIS visit to Scotland. Alison Morrison-Low introduced the visit by an exciting talk on Scottish instruments and instrument making (see separate item). After Alison’s speech we were turned loose on the Science Gallery, one of the top gal- leries in the museum.This gallery exhibits in a well-arranged way more than 1000 objects covering all branches of science, Scottish instruments as well as non- Scottish,quite a few of them acquired rela- tively recently,after 1960.The scope of the collection and several of its highlights have already been mentioned by Alison in her introductory talk, and further details may be found in Mary Holbrook, R.G.W. Anderson and D.J. Bryden, Science Preserved (London,1992),pp.123-127.So I shall restrict myself to mentioning only a few additional items which especially caught my interest. The astronomy section has an 18th -century Chinese planisphere centred on the North Pole, the only such example known.Also, Fig. 3 Ellipsograph by John Farey, 1812. Photograph by David Thompson. there is an impressive tall vertical orrery by John Miller of Edinburgh of c. 1780, excel- scope by William Herschel,c.1800.It is sup- it an unsigned 17th -century Flemish noc- lent for class demonstrations, one of the ported by a wooden framework typical of turnal comprising among other things a objects of the museum’s fine collection of this size of Herschel telescopes.Among the table of tides of ports along the European philosophical instruments. In the repre- more than forty sundials I noticed a coast from France to the Netherlands.The sentative collection of telescopes one dom- mechanical equinoctial dial by Gaspard collection of drawing instruments com- inant example is a 10-foot reflecting tele- Hommer of Luneville, c. 1750, and close to prises an ellipsograph by John Farey, 1812

12 Bulletin of the Scientific Instrument Society No. 78 (2003) Tuesday Afternoon, 29th April 2003

The Sir Jules Thorn Medical Museum of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh Following a light lunch, taken at either of the two cafes in the Royal Museum of Scotland,we walked the short,quite short,distance to the Sir Fig. 5 Early anatomical preparation of the Jules Thorn Medical Museum, part hand and foot, showing blood vessels. of the Royal College of Surgeons of Photograph by Mike Cowham. Edinburgh.The Barber-Surgeons of the city had been granted a Charter as far back as 1505,and the Faculty of Medicine established in 1726. Finally in 1778 King George III granted a Royal Charter to the R.C.S.(Edinburgh), and from then on this body was responsible for the rapid development of systemat- ic medical teaching on a sounder scientific basis (Fig. 5). Straightforward surgery, in those days, still suffered from a lingering academic prejudice, seen as a man- Fig. 4 Scottish polyhedral sundial. ual craft,against what was being perceived Photograph by Claus Jensen. (by the more enlightened physicians) as an (Fig. 3), suitable for drawing circles in per- intellectual discipline.The initial collection spective. In the section of electricity there of old surgical instruments, artefacts and is an ABC telegraph receiver by Cooke & apparatus had begun as early as 1697, but Wheatstone, 1840, having a revolving cir- since there were no funds to continue the cular disc provided with letters.This makes process, it was handed over to Edinburgh it possible to use the receiver without any University in the 1760s as a long-term loan. knowledge of codes. Finally, there is an The present collection was re-started in 1804. early printing telegraph by Wheatstone, Fig. 6 Waxwork of Joseph Lister with his car- 1841.This invention was never commer- We were greeted by the Curator, Dawn bolic spray.Photograph by Mike Cowham. cially exploited, so only two such instru- Kemp,and then we listened for ten minutes ments are known today. to Professor Dugald Gardner.Now aged 80, In the adjacent Museum of Scotland there he had begun his working life in science are a few Scottish stone polyhedral dials and medicine in 1937. He explained how (Fig. 4).And there is, of course, a showcase the human cell had been discovered, start- containing sets of Napier rods.The exhib- ing with the first tentative efforts by Anthony van Leeuwenhoek and his ‘single- ited rods are accompanied by a nearby th interactive screen which instructs the visi- bead’ microscope of the late 17 century tor how to use the rods for performing mul- and continued slowly ‘..until the break- tiplications of numbers. In general I have through, in this very college, by Joseph reservations about screens in museums, Jackson Lister in 1827, who introduced his especially when screens tend to substitute new fine-quality compound microscope the artefacts. But in this case the exhibited lenses’.The cell theory was published in Napier rods and the accompanying screen 1857.The word ‘microtome’was first coined presented the instrument and its way of by the French constructor Charles functioning in a most successful way. Chevalier in 1839,although the instrument was only introduced from 1858. It could The Science Gallery in the Royal Museum is slice fine slivers of human tissue, so thin anticipating future changes of a more or that they could be examined under a micro- less radical nature.As of now the artefacts scope and the cells observed. It aided diag- exhibited document in a very well arranged nosis, or to establish a cause of death, and way scientific activity and instrument mak- became a vital tool of pathology. ing in and outside Scotland.We are all famil- iar with museums whose collections of sci- Lister pere had an even more illustrious son, entific instruments are hidden in reserve also named Joseph, and a large display in stores, unavailable not only to the general the main room showed why. Lister fils public, but also sometimes hard to reach (1827-1912) followed the work of Louis for visitors with a more specialized inter- Pasteur in France, which had showed that est. Hopefully, the Royal Museum is not invisible (to the naked eye) bacteria could Fig. 7 Squire’s anaesthetic apparatus, as going to transfer artefacts from its won- infect an open wound, be it caused by an depicted in The Illustrated London News on derful Science Gallery to the reserve store. accident,in battle or by surgery.By 1860 he January 9th 1847. Photograph by Royal was Regius Professor of Surgery at the College of Surgeons. Claus Jensen

Bulletin of the Scientific Instrument Society No. 78 (2003) 13 Glasgow Royal Infirmary. He was aware of the theories of Oliver Wendell Holmes in 1843 at Harvard, concerning the causes of puerperal fever in women in childbed, and the work of Ignaz Semmelweis, who at the Vienna General Hospital put the theory into practise with spectacular success. By 1865 Lister was ready to test his own theory.As an example, a boy was brought in: falling under a heavy cart, a wheel had crushed a leg. Normally speaking, amputation would be standard. But Lister set the broken limb and bound the wound with cloth steeped in carbolic acid, as a barrier against infec- tion.The boy recovered, and Lister devel- oped the idea. Soon, the whole operating table, patient and all around, were sprayed with a mist of dilute carbolic acid (Fig. 6). The recovery rate was remarkable.Visitors from abroad, going the rounds with him in the surgical wards,noted the ‘clean smell of antiseptic, and the marked absence of the usual smell of putrefaction’. For this pio- Fig. 8 Instruments provided for hands-on session. Photograph by Peter Louwman. neering work, later copied by hospitals across Europe, he was created 1st Baron Lister, the first medical peer. carved mother-o’-pearl handles.There was a Wednesday Morning, 30th April 2003 large selection of keys (later tooth-extrac- Elsewhere, in cabinets, were various indi- tors), including small examples for chil- National Museums of Scotland vidual instruments, including a cut-steel dren’s mouths, and all sorts of de-scaling mid-18th century brace-type trephine and Granton Centre sets in small cases.The sets of false teeth various cased sets of amputation instru- Many Curators would envy the National included those carved from ivory,and those ments,including a set with chequered ivory Museums of Scotland their Granton Centre fitted with real teeth,either taken from the handles. Such sets are nowadays very rare. where reserve collections are held and con- quick (for modest money) or the dead,from One display board showed musket balls of servation work is carried out.A few miles battlefields such as Waterloo or conflicts different sizes removed from wounded or north of Edinburgh city centre,the purpose- during the American Civil War. dead soldiers after the battle of Waterloo.A built buildings provide a central facility for small but highly important display showed In smaller groups we were led to the base- the six museums making up the national two very early and rare anaesthetic devices: ment of an adjoining building and shown museums in Scotland and, unusually, the Squire’s original design, using a large glass the Pathology Department, guided by Centre is open to the public for weekly or container looking like a large ship’s Andrew Connell,Collections Manager.What special visits.For our visit,Alison Morrison- decanter; and Tracey’s ether inhaler, much caught our eye was not the ranks of things Low, Rachael Dempster and Frances Yeo smaller but dating from 1847, and just one preserved in glass jars,or a selection of early had arranged some 40 instruments for a year after William Morton had successfully microtomes,but the racks containing verti- hands-on viewing session (Fig. 8), clearly used sulphuric ether as a general anaes- cally stacked pictures, prints, photographs labelled, accompanied by a helpfully thetic, on 16th October 1846 at the or sketches, some of past luminaries, some descriptive list and including a wide range Massachusetts General Hospital.On Monday of people suffering from a frightful disor- of makers, dates and nationalities. st December 21 that same year Professor der (‘before’and ‘after’photos,taken in the We expected to see objects from Scottish Liston amputated a leg at University College days when surgical techniques were still instrument–makers;they were represented Hospital, London, with William Squire and rudimentary),or Graduation Day groups of by a pantograph by W. and A. Smith of his new apparatus as the anaesthetist, the a forgotten era.To us, these were equally Mauchline, Ayrshire, a circular protractor first time such an operation had been car- interesting and important as the tools and by Adie, a surveyor’s level from the same ried out in Europe.It caused a medical sen- instruments upstairs. maker and a small hand telescope by sation, and a sketch of the apparatus was Lennie of Edinburgh dated at c.1850.These shown in the Illustrated London News on Dawn Kemp’s favourite item is the oil paint- th ing by Dr Charles Bell, (1774-1842), an last two were from the Arthur Frank col- January 9 the next year (Fig. 7). I cannot lection of Scottish instruments. Other remember either of the two devices being Edinburgh-trained surgeon but also a tal- ented artist, whose depiction of a group of Scottish objects included a Sykes hydrom- offered at auction, much less an original eter and an Allen’s saccharometer both Morton inhaler. wounded soldiers awaiting treatment after the battle of Corunna (16th January 1809) signed ‘P.Stevenson, Edinburgh’, and dated In another room the extensive dental col- hangs in the Gallery. A later companion c.1910, and a horizontal 12 - inch dial by lection was on display,with Dr Paul Geissler piece by him, a watercolour of wounded Bryson of Edinburgh for a latitude of 15 on hand to explain things. About 90% of soldiers at Brussels, the day after the battle degrees north, perhaps for India. Mason & these exhibits had come from the John of Waterloo, is in the Wellcome Collection, Co. of Glasgow were the makers of a 19th Menzies Campbell Collection, amongst London. Bell is now remembered for his century level. which I appreciated several pelicans – early identification of the malady Bell’s Palsy, Sundial worshippers also appreciated a tooth extractors – including two very rare described by him in 1821. portable ivory diptych dial by Lienhart 17th century examples with box-wood We thanked our hostess,and ambled out to Miler of Innsbruck and dated 1619, a 17th shafts;Harris’s Patent Clock-work Drill,with century French string gnomon dial also in the usual silver-plated and engraved finish, enjoy the rest of the only really warm sunny afternoon of the entire visit. ivory,an undated brass analemmatic dial for complete in its original case; and sets of latitude 46 degrees 30 minutes with Latin tampers or pluggers, one with ornate Arthur Middleton inscription,and a universal equinoctial ring

14 Bulletin of the Scientific Instrument Society No. 78 (2003) and English inches.There was a fine early magazine-case set from Elliott at 268 Holborn, who were also later the mak- ers of a Cole’s pattern com- bined prismatic compass and clinometer. A single prismatic sight served for both func- tions; the separate pendulous clinometer scale was a copy of the compass card. With other instruments it had belonged to John Munro, a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh and a Scottish pio- neer of electrical science. A good complete example of Gorham’s whirling colour disc apparatus was also from Elliott Bros and included a set of instructions. A six-inch diameter Fig.9 Compass by Joshua Springer of Bristol. wood–cased mariner’s compass made by Photograph by Howard Dawes. Springer of Bristol in 1790 (Fig. 9) remind- ed us of Alison Morrison-Low’s work on provincial instrument makers and of her dial by Johann Somers of Augsburg dated at talk on Bristol makers when the Society vis- Fig. 11 Robert Prescott with reverse of the c.1720. A Culpeper - type microscope ited that city. Humphrey Cole Astrolabe.In the background signed ‘Dollond’ had been fitted with rack the mariner’s astrolabe by Elias Allen, 1616. Before leaving Granton,we spent a few min- Photograph by Claus Jensen. and pinion focusing, showing that the par- utes looking at some of the larger objects ticular example had remained in use long stored there, notably steam engines (Fig. after the style went out of fashion. It was 10), lighthouse optics, heavy electrical th part of a compendium which included a engineering equipment,and vintage motor Wednesday Afternoon, 30 April 2003 solar and a screw-barrel microscope. A cycles, all much appreciated by our dele- compound microscope signed ‘Powell & gates with engineering backgrounds. Our St. Andrews Lealand’, with an iron pillar, was dated at Chairman, Gloria Clifton, expressed our After a pleasant lunch in the small town of c.1840. gratitude for the excellent arrangements St. Andrews we crossed the road to St. Drawing instruments included a set by W. made by Alison Morrison-Low and her team; Mary’s College where we were welcomed Harris & Co. and an attractive brass rule by we left wanting for nothing except more in the Senate Room by the Principal, Dr. John Urings, London, having scales of time at this impressive site. Brian Lang.He enthusiastically told us how Middleburg,Amsterdam, Rhineland, French they really like to show off their wonderful Ron Bristow instruments, some of which were laid out on the tables around us.We were already salivating for the opportunity to examine them closer. The Keeper of these instruments, Dr. Ian Carradice explained how the College was founded in the early 15th century. St. Andrews was therefore the third university in these islands after Oxford and Cambridge. He tells us that they have been steadily acquiring their treasures ever since. Their 1703 inventory records an astrolabe. This would have been the large plani- spheric astrolabe by Humphrey Cole dated 21st May 1575 (Figs 11-13). It had appar- ently not been purchased as a new item but was acquired from London by Professor James Gregory who was Professor of Mathematics from 1668. Gregory (1638- 1675) is generally credited with the inven- tion of the reflecting telescope. In 1673 he had been sent to London to acquire ‘such instruments and utensils as is most neces- sary and useful’ for the teaching of mathe- matics and astronomy. Dr. Carradice sur- mises that when Gregory was in London he Fig. 10 Large horizontal steam engine. Photograph by David Thompson. found the Cole astrolabe, which had been

Bulletin of the Scientific Instrument Society No. 78 (2003) 15 Fig.12 Humphrey Cole astrolabe, 1575 with new plate for central Scotland by John Marke made in about 1670.Photograph by Sheldon Glusman.

made for English latitudes and commis- sioned John Marke to customise it by mak- Fig. 13 Throne of Cole astrolabe. Photograph by Mike Cowham. ing a new plate for 56° 25’suitable for cen- tral Scotland. Gregory also acquired the strikinge for discerninge small intervalls; when Robert Prescott then gave a short intro- three famous clocks from Joseph Knibb at there may be a parte of a seconde in question. duction to each of the instruments laid out the same time.A letter of his exists to John He told us that the University do not have a on the tables before us.They were all made Flamsteed dated 19th July 1673 where he portrait of Gregory but they do have one of within about 125 years of each other.The describes the clocks: the man who appointed him,Archbishop star item is the large Humphrey Cole astro- James Sharp.Sharp had persuaded the King labe, which was greatly admired by us all. I have 2 Pendulum Clocks makinge with long Unusually it has a compartment in its swinges, vibratinge seconds and pointing hours to finance a chair of mathematics and minutes and seconds without strikinge,and also Charles II created a ‘Regius Chair of throne to hold a compass, suggesting that one little Pendulum Clock, with a short pendu- Mathematics’ to which Gregory was the it was also intended to be used for survey- 1 lum vibrating 4 times in a second, also without first appointment. ing in the horizontal position.

Fig. 15 Small hooded regulator by Joseph Knibb with tic-tac escapement. It beats three times a second to provide even more precise observations Fig. 14 Humphrey Cole nautical hemisphere, 1582.Photograph and was the first in the world to record split seconds.Photograph by Mike by Mike Cowham. Cowham.

16 Bulletin of the Scientific Instrument Society No. 78 (2003) by J.Wilson, and optical components from the Scott-Lang telescope. Some delegates visited the nearby Chemistry Department to inspect a collec- tion of scientific glassware. Dr Robert Anderson has written about this collection 4 and considers it to be one of ‘two significant collections of chemical glassware from the late 18th or early 19th centuries’.That at St.Andrews was discov- ered in 1925 and he believes it to be asso- ciated with Thomas Thomson and Professor Robert Briggs.

Notes 1. G. L’E.Turner: Elizabethan Instrument Makers (Oxford University Press, 2000). 2. R. A. Lee: The Knibb Family Clockmakers (Byfleet: Manor House Press, 1964). 3. See SIS Bulletin, No. 64 (2000), pp. 30-31. 4. R.G. W.Anderson, ‘A Source for 18th Century Chemical Glass’, in G. Dragoni,A. McConnell and G.L’E. Turner, eds, Proceedings of the Eleventh International Scientific Instrument Symposium [Bologna University, 9-14 September, 1991] (Bologna: Grafis Edizioni, 1994). Mike Cowham

Thursday, 1st May 2003

Glasgow Fig. 16 Humphrey Cole made in about 1750. Photograph by Howard Dawes. Another rainy morning saw the delegates huddled inside the entrance to the Museum of Scotland waiting for the bus to take them An exceptionally large mariner’s astrolabe used so that its ticks could be clearly heard to Glasgow for visits to three museums. By 2 by Elias Allen dated 1616 was demonstrat- around the observatory. the time we reached Pollok Country Park, ed. It was obviously designed for accuracy A small display of further instruments of site of the Burrell Collection, Glasgow rather than portability and due to its weight various types was to be seen in the nearby Museums and Art Galleries, the prehistoric it was probably used in conjunction with a Department of Psychology. looking highland cattle in the park enjoyed tripod. It has scales at both ends of the ali- a few rays of sunshine. Ms. Muriel King, dade for more accurate measurement and We moved on later to the School of Physics manager of the collection, gave us a short one of these scales is engraved with diago- and Astronomy on the outskirts of St. introduction to the collection, comprising nal lines to allow it to be read to an accu- Andrews where we were welcomed by Mr. some 9000 pieces of art gifted to the City of 1 racy of /6 of one degree. Robert Prescott Jonathan Armitage. He had set out some Glasgow in 1944 by the shipping magnate believes this to be the only mariners astro- instruments on a bench for close inspec- Sir William Burrell and his wife.The collec- labe known of definite British manufacture. tion.These were mostly electrical instru- tion is housed in a spectacular, purpose- ments ranging from early electric motors An 8-draw refracting telescope with vellum built museum building opened in 1983. to electrostatic discharge tubes.They have Delegates had a chance to follow their tubes was displayed but its optics are now on display an impressive electrotype copy, missing.The telescope’s origins are uncer- interests, picking (among other displays) made recently in the British Museum3,of from the rich collections from ancient tain. It is most unlikely that James Gregory the great Cole astrolabe that we saw earlier would have made it but possible that he Egypt, Greece and Rome, to Chinese, at St. Mary’s.They also have a 24-inch focal Gothic and Islamic art, as well as 16th and may have used it. Inventories dated 1697 length James Short reflecting telescope and 1714,list a ‘long parchment telescope’, 17th century paintings displayed in rooms dated 1736, with a mahogany main tube with appropriate furnishings. which could be this one. Also inspected and mounted on an equatorial brass stand. was an impressive nautical hemisphere, again by Humphrey Cole (Fig. 14) and An interesting orrery by Benjamin Cole After an excellent lunch at the Gallery dated 1582.1 The final instrument was a (Fig.16) made about 1750 is displayed.It is Restaurant, University of Glasgow the vis- large gilt brass Dutch circumferentor,early no longer in use due to some repairs being its continued at the Hunterian Museum at 17th century, finely engraved but unfortu- required but unusually it has glass panels the University of Glasgow.The Hunterian nately unsigned. around its box to allow the mechanism to Museum houses many interesting collec- be inspected.The other instruments seen tions, but of most interest to the delegates It is impossible to visit this great room with- included an early Ross microscope used by out commenting on the two graceful and was the Natural Philosophy collection and David Brewster, a former Principal, a heli- especially the Kelvin Gallery dedicated to identical longcase regulator clocks by um liquefier built in the University and Joseph Knibb.These stand proudly either the work of WilliamThomson, Lord Kelvin used from 1950 until 1965,a standard ohm of Largs. Michael Jewkes, Curator of side of a large portrait. In addition is the made in 1836 with an x-ray photograph small hooded wall clock (Fig. 15), also by Scientific Instruments gave an introduction showing its internal wiring,two Atwood fall to the collections standing in front of the Knibb, beating quarter seconds and using machines, one by Troughton and the other a tic-tac escapement.This would have been Newcomen steam engine belonging to the

Bulletin of the Scientific Instrument Society No. 78 (2003) 17 Fig. 17 Stirling’s hot air engine presented to Kelvin. Fig. 18 Kelvin’s ‘mouse mill’telegraph motor.Photograph by Mike Cowham. Photograph by Mike Cowham.

Natural Philosophy class of Prof.Anderson Rankine was a prolific writer of engineer- namics.There is also a model hot-air engine (see below).This engine is really one of the ing textbooks and campaigned for Glasgow (Fig. 17) that its inventor, the Rev. Stirling great icons of the beginning of the indus- University’s recognition (1872) of engi- (another Scot),presented to Kelvin,and the trial revolution. James Watt, partner in an neering studies as a full university degree. calorimeter that was used by Joule and instrument shop in Glasgow and one-time Both made significant contributions to the Kelvin to establish the ‘final’ value of the ‘instrument maker to the College’ was emerging science of thermodynamics, and mechanical equivalent of heat. Of course, charged with putting it in working order both were honoured by naming absolute the electrical instruments that Thomson about 1764, after the Sissons in London temperature scales after them: Kelvin for invented or improved (galvanometers,teleg- (likely the original makers) were unable to the scale with the temperature intervals in raphy items (Fig. 18), and others) are also do so. He established by observation and Celsius units, Rankine for the scale with well represented. This visit left a huge measurement that an extraordinarily large degree intervals of the Fahrenheit size. impression on me. Yet, it brought home amount of condensing water and steam again the fact that even an extensive, yet The Kelvin gallery above the main floor of were required,and that the boiler could not still more or less random collection of the Hunterian illustrates Kelvin’s career in supply that much steam except for a few material artefacts needs to be comple- science and teaching, including items he strokes. He set out to find ways to reduce mented by a study of the relevant publica- inherited or purchased for teaching, or the steam consumption,aided by a series of tions,of which Sylvanus Thompson,Kelvin’s designed himself for that purpose.There is pioneering experiments on the properties biographer,lists 641.Of course the time was a vast selection of teaching instruments in of steam that led to his concept of a ‘per- too limited for a thorough appreciation,and the areas of light,electricity and magnetism, fect’ engine.A first practical step was his I would like to thank Mike Jewkes for some heat, mechanics and acoustics.Yes,there is invention of the separate condenser (1765), communications after the visit.In the muse- even a double windmill,mounted in its own which made the steam engine a relatively um the visitor is able to use a CD with won- vacuum container, displayed ready for use efficient prime mover to power the indus- derful documentation of the items dis- on a vacuum pump. Another group of trial revolution. played.There is some hope that this can be instruments includes those that Kelvin and made available for sale or on the Internet Earlier than in England,individuals and insti- his (few) collaborators used in actual for wider use within a year. tutions in Scotland were thus involved in physics research work.There are probably the kind of science and science education more significant items in this category than The final visit of the day was to the Collins that should produce practical results. in any other museum in the world. An Gallery at the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow University has a particularly strong example are the thermometers that Kelvin Glasgow. Laura Hamilton, its Curator, had tradition in this area.At Glasgow a highpoint and Joule (his major collaborator judging prepared wonderful documentation, easily was reached in the second half of the nine- by the number of joint publications) used the best available during the entire trip. teenth century with the activities of in their study of what is now known as the Many thanks. Many of the items gathered Professors William Thomson (associated Joule-Thomson effect, a very fundamental for a special display during our visit were with the University from 1846 to his death series of experiments in thermodynamics those left by Prof. John Anderson (of in 1907) and William John Mcquorn that also forms the basis for many refriger- Glasgow University,above) on his death in Rankine (associated with the University ation processes.Another important item is 1796.These were from his personal collec- from 1855 to his death in 1872).Thomson a gas compression apparatus, instrumental tion, and the purpose of the donation was (Kelvin) established the first teaching labo- in establishing Kelvin’s own particular for- to help found a new educational institution ratory at a university in the British Isles,and mulation of the second law of thermody- (Anderson’s Institution, eventually becom-

18 Bulletin of the Scientific Instrument Society No. 78 (2003) Friday Morning, 2nd May 2003

The Discovery in Dundee On the very dull and windy Friday morn- ing, en route to Aberdeen, we visited Discovery (Fig. 19), the ship that took Robert Falcon Scott to the Antarctic in 1901. Due to the number of magnetic observations Discovery would undertake, it was to be built largely of wood. By the turn of the century most shipyards had moved to iron as the principle material of shipbuilding but Dundee still held with tra- dition and was able to undertake its con- struction. It was launched in Dundee in March 1901 as the first ship to be built specifically for scientific research.After its retirement in 1931,it resided for many years on the Thames and over the years was used by the Royal Navy and the Boy Scouts Association alike.After several decades of neglect, she was moved back to Dundee and underwent extensive renovation. Discovery was opened to the public as a part of the Dundee heritage centre in 1993. On board a lot of effort has gone into recre- ating the atmosphere of the ship as it was under Scott’s command.The galley,the mess rooms, the officers’Wardroom and the sci- ence stations have all been carefully returned to their former glory.The result is an enjoyable flavour of what it might have been like, minus the singing and smoking that was no doubt in abundance a century ago. One thing that is immediately evident on board, and particularly below decks, is its relative spaciousness.The living quarters were roomy and clearly comfortable and although space was clearly a premium, there was a sense that the 47-man crew could live very well on board.Since this was a purpose-built vessel, it was obvious that the work it was to undertake and the well being of the crew were central to the over- all design of the ship. Unfortunately our visit to the Discovery was a very short one and very soon we were on the road to St.Andrews.As a result we did not have time to look at the extensive visi- tor centre that sets up the context of the Discovery in Dundee.For anyone returning Fig. 19 Royal Research Ship Discovery berthed at Dundee.Photograph by Sheldon Glusman. to the area there was a lot to suggest a more leisurely visit would be of great interest. ing the University of Strathclyde). octants (one by Bird), hydrostatic instru- Rob Warren ments (pumps,communicating vessels,‘per- Anderson’s items were complemented in nd the exhibit by other items bought for the pendicular’ pressure in liquids), models of Friday Afternoon and Evening, 2 May institution he founded. Most items were a Gregorian and a Newtonian reflecting 2003 used in teaching, or they were typical pos- telescope, mechanical demonstrations sessions of a gentleman. One item repre- (frame with pulleys,levers,inclined planes, Aberdeen University senting original research was a model of ‘double cone’ paradox, model screw and After arriving by coach in the heart of ‘Anderson’s ship gun’, in which the recoil nut), air or vacuum pumps, weighing Aberdeen, we briefly visited an exhibition was taken up by compression of gas.After devices, a planetary model (maker at King’s College on the history of the failing to interest the English government unknown). Among the post-Anderson University of Aberdeen, formed from two in his invention he took it to Paris,and tried instruments we found three orreries (two rival universities located a mile apart.King’s to peddle it to the National Convention in by W.& S. Jones), an air pump ascribed to College was founded in 1495 by William 1791.Among Anderson’s instruments we James Watt, and a solar microscope by Elphinstone (1431-1514), Bishop of find a magnetometer and a variation com- Adams to be especially noteworthy. Aberdeen and Chancellor of Scotland,with pass (both by James Crichton, Glasgow), Paul Zoller

Bulletin of the Scientific Instrument Society No. 78 (2003) 19 Fig.20 Teaching version of the Faraday disc at the University Fig. 21 Instruments for inspection at the University of Aberdeen. of Aberdeen. Photograph by Howard Dawes. Photograph by Mike Cowham.

the support of his friend James IV of An ambitious online database of a portion large Ross microscope,wondrous electrical Scotland (reign 1488-1513). Marischal of the Marischal Museum is being devel- instruments, and numerous computers. College was founded as a rival institution in oped for teaching using LEMUR (‘LEarning Attendees also had the opportunity to see 1593 in protest over political differences with MUseum Resources’).This project will the two floors of the Marischal Museum, that followed the reformation.The two uni- provide pictures and historical background whose collection is of national importance. versities were joined in 1860 by royal ordi- for around 200 of the 2000 instruments in It holds 70,000 items, with particular nance under the title of the University of the collection, along with thousands of strengths in Scottish history and archaeol- Aberdeen. other items in the Marischal Museum. A launch is planned for this summer,and our ogy, European, Mediterranean and Near Having all worked up an appetite with all group got a sneak preview of some of the Eastern Archaeology, Non-Western this history,we had an elegant buffet lunch pages that contain instruments.There was Ethnography, Fine Art and Numismatics. nearby in Crombie Hall. After lunch, we sparse information on the instrument mak- There were several fine instruments,with a boarded the coach and zipped along the ers, and hopefully this will be rectified in wonderful set of mechanical pulleys in a narrow High Street framed by solid homes the final version. mahogany frame by W & S Jones,and a dou- of grey granite blocks. ble windmill stamped ‘Univ.Abdn.Nat.Phil.’, We were able to view and carefully handle made by Prof Patrick Copland. Many of the We arrived soon at the Marischal Museum, a great appetizer of philosophical instru- instruments in the Marischal Museum will founded in 1786 when it was part of ments that John had selected for us from be incorporated in the LEMUR project. Marischal College. Dr.John Reid, curator of the stores, including an early example of the Physics Department,gave an illustrated Faraday’s Disc, the first dynamo Upstairs in the large main hall tea and cof- talk on the extensive collections of demon- (Figs 20 and 21). Many of these choice fee were served underneath a bronze bust stration apparatus and how the two uni- instruments can be viewed at of James Clerk Maxwell, Professor of versity collections were merged.The result- http://www.abdn.ac.uk/~nph126. Natural Philosophy from 1856-1860.Several ing collection of 2000 instruments was of Maxwell’s instruments are exhibited in used for teaching up until 25 years ago.The The best part for many was a visit to the the main museum. instruments range from the mid-18th cen- basement, a virtual Aladdin’s Cave, where Rob Warren tury until the 1990s (computers). John 2000 instruments are stored. I counted 24 pointed out that pre-20th century instru- barometers alone, and observed one mem- ments are mostly from Marischal College, ber eagerly writing down maker’s names Aberdeen Maritime Museum and the 20th century material represents and locations in a never-ending quest.Other A few hundred yards from Marischal one of the best collections of its kind. treasures were a Culpeper microscope, a College, and appropriately situated just off

20 Bulletin of the Scientific Instrument Society No. 78 (2003) Important Collections in Scotland All the collections visited by the SIS in their visit to Scotland may be seen, but as all except those at Edinburgh, the Burrell Collection and the University of Glasgow are located in teaching departments of uni- versities,it is recommended that an appoint- ment is arranged with the appropriate cura- tor in advance of the visit.

ABERDEEN Dr John Reid, School of Physics, Fraser Noble Building,The University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen AB24 3UE Tel: 01224 272507 e-mail [email protected]

EDINBURGH Dr Alison Morrison-Low,Department of Social and Technological History,National Museums of Scotland, Edinburgh EH1 1JF Tel: 0131 247 4248 e-mail [email protected] Ms Dawn Kemp, Curator, Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh, Surgeons Hall, Edinburgh EH8 9DW Fig.22.Alison Morrion-Low with our chairman, Gloria Clifton.A big ‘thank-you’ to Alison and Tel: 0131 527 1607 her colleagues in Scotland. Photograph by Sheldon Glusman. e-mail [email protected]

GLASGOW the water front,was the final port of call for maker or by subsequent association.The Mr Michael Jewkes,The University of the week - the Aberdeen Maritime Museum. instruments shown to us included several Glasgow,Glasgow G12 8QQ It is housed in a contrasting mixture of old octants,a speed log and a fine double-frame sextant by Plath of Hamburg. Everyone at Tel: 0141 339 8855 and new buildings. The left side of the e-mail [email protected] museum is the old Trinity Church, dating the museum was welcoming and friendly, from 1877; the right side is Provost Ross’ allowing our final visit of the week to be a Ms Muriel King House dating from 1593.Linking these two very enjoyable and informative one. Burrell Collection, 2060 Pollockshaws Road, buildings, and forming the entrance area, Glasgow G43 1AT Rob Warren shop, café and galleries, is a piece of mod- Tel: 0141 649 7151 ern architecture of steel and glass. Old and Society Dinner www.clyde-valley.com/Glasgow/burrell.htm new sit well together and create a striking The evening (Fig.22) was capped by a won- ST. ANDREWS facade for the visitor to the museum. derful prime Scottish beef dinner at the ele- Ms Helen Rawson, St.Andrews University And the contrast of old and new continues gant Marcliffe Hotel, where trip organizers Museum Collections, University of St. inside.The modern central structure main- were presented with appropriate tokens of Andrews, St.Andrews, Fife. KY16 9AJ appreciation. ly tells the story of oil production,an impor- Tel: 01334 462617 tant part of modern maritime history in Steve Beare e-mail [email protected] Aberdeen.With large sections of hardware stretching through the floors and with inter- STRATHCLYDE active and static exhibits all around,this is a Saturday Morning, 3rd May 2003 Ms Laura Hamilton, Collins Gallery,22 busy part of the museum.These modern Saturday turned out to be unexpectedly fine Richmond Street, Glasgow.G1 1XQ areas link into the two older buildings. weather,and we returned to Edinburgh via Tel: 0141 548 2558 Here, the atmosphere is subdued by com- the picturesque route through Royal e-mail [email protected] parison, telling the stories of a much older Deeside countryside.We followed the rush- aspect of Aberdeen’s maritime tradition. ing, winding river Dee west through lush Local industries such as ship building and countryside with red-branched Scots pines, fishing are bought to life with displays of passing Balmoral with flag flying. Our wel- photographs and objects, complimented come morning coffee stop was an old with rich texts and stories. drover’s inn.The terrain gradually changed In addition to enjoying this small but well to wild moors and high hills covered with thought out museum,the group was treated spring lambs, where we headed south to to a private viewing of some instruments Perth and joined the motorway to from the museum’s collection that were not Edinburgh by way of the Forth Road Bridge. generally on display. John Edwards, the By popular request, our coach driver Keeper of the museum, kindly welcomed stopped at Queensferry so we could see the us and introduced the instruments.In keep- dramatic 1889 Forth Bridge.In accord with ing with the museum as a whole, he the organization of the entire trip,the coach explained, it is a general policy to collect pulled into the Edinburgh airport at pre- instruments that have particular connec- cisely 13:30 to the immense relief of the Polyhedral sundial in the Museum of Scotland. tions to Aberdeen, whether through the conference organizers. Photograph by Claus Jensen. Steve Beare

Bulletin of the Scientific Instrument Society No. 78 (2003) 21 Ulrich Schenk, a forgotten Swiss instrument-maker

Anthony Turner

In the summer of 1821 the young friends ment, while helping John Herschel and Charles Babbage trav- Thomas MacClear (1794- elled through France to Switzerland and 1879) in his re-measure- Northern Italy.1 On the return leg of their ment of Lacaille’s triangula- journey, in Berne, Herschel purchased an tions around the Cape of instrument from a notable,but now forgot- Good Hope, to measure a ten maker, Ulrich Schenk. small base-line of his own at Feldhausen (below Cape The instrument that Herschel purchased, 2 Town), which he linked and which still survives, was a repeating into MaClear’s survey. theodolite with two sighting telescopes Presumably he was using it mounted on an 8.75-inch (218mm) diame- when he recorded on 20th ter base (Fig.1).It is signed ‘Ul= Schenck & November 1837, ‘Took Compe= à Berne’, and consists of a 3-leg angles (at risk of my neck) stand with levelling feet, each fitted with a from top of Wynberg Stone clamping screw, rising to a circular stage wh[ich] Is a nasty ugly around the central column. A three-arm block to read off upon. - A plate with a triangular wire binding around great granite Rounded its centre carried between the legs on three Mass’.3 small ledges screwed to the inside of the top of the legs may be a later adaptation. It Why should Herschel have acts as a stop to the central steel screw of purchased an instrument the vertical column of the instrument. from a then, and now, Immediately above the legs, rotatable unknown maker? The around the stage, is a ring carrying a short immediate reason may be vertical arm on which is a patinated block that Schenk had been rec- with a short vertical slot.The ring may be ommended to him by Marc- clamped in position by a screw,but the pur- August Pictet (1752-1825), pose of the arrangement is not evident. President of the Académie Mounted above this is the sub-stage tele- des Sciences de Genève, scope rotatable around the central column whom Herschel had visited and with slow motion adjustment through on his outward journey and who, six years Fig. 1 Repeating theodolite by Ulrich Schenk a clamping screw mounted on an arm earlier, had written an eulogious report on purchased by John Herschel in 1821. beneath,and clamping onto,the lower com- a dividing engine of Schenk’s construction, Copyright National Maritime Museum, ponent of the horizontal centre plate.This and who owned an 8-inch repeating Greenwich. plate, which has an open 6-spoke centre, theodolite by Schenk similar to that which carries on its upper surface a split inlaid sil- Herschel would acquire.4 A second reason ver scale engraved on the outer ring with may be that while visiting Geneva 360° reading directly to 10 arc minutes,and Observatory, Herschel had been able to he should make theodolites using the to 1 arc minute by any one of the four examine ‘a theodolite by Reichenbach repeating principle of the Borda circle. verniers mounted on the inner ring, taken to pieces by the ‘mécanicien de adjustable through a slow-motion screw,by l’Observatoire’’.5 The instrument that On 20th May 1815,Treschel sent a compar- either of the two reading microscopes.Each Herschel purchased was built on ison of an 8-inch theodolite by Schenk with of the verniers has a small reflecting screen Reichenbach’s model.The fundamental rea- a 12- inch instrument by Reichenbach to placed above it, lettered A - D. Mounted on son however was probably that Herschel the Bibliothèque Britannique.Treschel had the same centre plate are the strutted sup- was deeply impressed by the quality of made the comparison in order to know ports for the vertical circle and the second Schenk’s workmanship and the originality how much confidence he could place in telescope. The vertical circle carries an of the design. Schenk’s small,and light,instrument which was so suitable ‘for carrying to great inlaid silver 360° scale read through two 6 verniers to 1 arc minute by two reading Schenk was born at Signau into a well- heights’.The result was an astonishing 0.64 microscopes,and is fitted with both clamp- established armigerous,bourgeois family,in arc seconds of difference, result on which ing and slow-motion screws.The 1.25 inch 1786,but it was in the city of Berne that he Pictet commented ‘A more satisfying exam- aperture telescope,with ratchet and screw was initially trained.At some point he came ple of agreement is not to be found in the focusing, is removable in its mounting the to the attention of Treschel, professor of annals of geodesy,nor one more proper to free pivot of which has a fine screw for ver- mathematics at Berne who raised a sub- inspire confidence in the instrument, as in tical adjustment. On one side of the instru- scription to enable Schenk to go to Munich the observer, who also well knows how to ment is a hanging level,and a striding level to work with Georg Reichenbach.An exten- use it’.8 sion of his sojourn in the city was financed is mounted on the cross axis for the tele- To produce instruments of this quality, scope and like it is removable for repeating by the Canton,the administration of which subsequently advanced him a capital loan, Schenk c.1812-14 had developed and built observations. The capped telescope has his own dividing engine.This Pictet, who crossed threads in the eyepiece focus,while interest free for two years,for him to estab- lish his own workshop in Berne.7 There he made a special journey to Berne to see it, below it, at the centre of the instrument, is described in some - but insufficient - detail a removable steel point similar to those was aided by and collaborated with,an ama- teur of fine technology, the lawyer M. and without illustrations.9 Translated his used for mounting compass needles but description is as follows : here of uncertain function. Luthardt and his friend Osterwald,maker of the new map of Neuchâtel published in His [horizontal] circle is large - four and a half In 1837, Herschel would use this instru- 1812/13 and who suggested to Schenk that feet diameter.Its axis,conical at its base and neck

22 Bulletin of the Scientific Instrument Society No. 78 (2003) is solidly mounted on a mass of rock Notes and References which goes through it and serves as a base and support for a frame made up of 1. Günther Buttmann, The Shadow of the solidly assembled pieces of iron which Telescope, a biography of John Herschel carries either the slide for the scribing- (Guildford & London 1974), pp. 37-8. point, or other pieces all of which main- 2. It is now in the National Maritime tain the greatest rigidity during the Museum, Greenwich S1-T16 /58-8 NAV deplacement of the dividing circle. 1463 having been purchased at the sale of Among these pieces are four strong the library and other Herschel memorabil- microscopes each with a spider’s thread ia held at Sotheby’s, 4th March 1958. in its focus, and which are placed above Although Herschel kept a diary of this jour- the ends of two diameters of the circle ney there is unfortunately no mention of which intersect at right-angles. ... the purchase of the instrument in mid- September when he was in Berne,nor even The dividing circle and its twelve radii were cast in a single operation by Mr. of visiting Schenk. Information from John Schenk the elder,...It was essential,if the Herschel-Shorland to whom my thanks for dilation was to be uniform,that this great searching the diary transcript in his pos- wheel was a single piece. Had it been session. cast solid it would have been of enor- 3. Paul S. Evans,Terrence J. Deeming, Betty mous weight. ... In the middle of the Hall Evans & Stephen Gold Farb, eds, upper side is an inlaid scale of silver on Herschel at the Cape. Diaries and which the divisions are better seen than Correspondence of Sir John Herschel on brass.These divisions are extremely 1831-1838 (Austin & London 1969), p. 51, fine and drawn for every 5 minutes. but there seems to be no direct reference Enough space has been left beyond them to Schenk’s instrument. to draw on the same limb the divisions 4. ‘Rapport fait à la Société des Arts de of any other system that one might wish, Genève sur une machine à diviser, et sur for example that into 400 parts, general- des instrumens de géodésie et de mathé- ly adopted on the instruments that are matiques,construits à Berne par M.Schenk made in Paris. ... 10 (15 mai 1815),Bibliothèque Britannique..., Dividing the circle was a fundamental 59 (1815), pp. 77-103. operation on the precision of which 5. Entry in J.F.W.Herschel’s ‘Diary’ kindly largely depended that of the entire communicated to me by John Herschel- instrument. ... It was carried out by the Shorland. help of microscopes fitted with right 6. Pictet (note 4) from whom most of the angle crossed spider threads.This pre- cisely diametrical position was obtained following biographical details derive. For by a sequence of trials made by bringing Reichenbach see Alto Brachner,‘German successively below the same microscope light Nineteenth-century Scientific Instrument- guide divisions drawn on the limb, and examin- Fig. 2 The brief catalogue of Schenk’s instru- makers’, in P. R. de Clercq, Nineteenth Century ing them with the microscope opposite to see ments published by Marc-August Pictet in Scientific Instruments and their Makers (Leiden & whether the division which should give two 1815. Amsterdam 1985), p. 147. equal semi-circumferences coincided or not;this 7.Editorial note in Bibliothèque Britannique (note condition being eventually obtained, as also for and described in detail to the Société des 4), pp. 199-200. the quarters of the circumference and subse- Arts in Geneva. Essentially it is the same 8. Ibid., pp. 195-99. quently for the bisections executed down to 5 instrument as that purchased six years later minutes or the twelfth of a degree.This opera- 9. Supra note 4. by John Herschel, and Pictet’s description 10. For decimal instruments and their context in tion required enormous patience, but it was helps us to appreciate its quality. It seems effected once and for all. early 19th century France see Anthony Turner, to correspond in the brief catalogue of ‘Antoine d’Abbadie et son observatoire décimal à Since Pictet himself then tells us that with- Schenk’s instruments that Pictet published Hendaye’ in Jean-Paul Poirier & Anthony Turner, out the aid of diagrams,which he does not (Fig. 2), with the ‘Théodolite répétiteur, de Antoine d’Abbadie (Académie des Sciences: give,it is pointless to describe the action of huit pouces, avec vertical simple’, and it is Mémoire de la Science 2), Paris 2002, pp. 58ff. the scribing point, the paragraph of very similar to the transit theodolite pro- 11.An elder brother according to Pictet (note 4), rhetoric that he devotes to the subject is duced by Reichenbach. The detailed p.101. Ulrich’s younger brother, Christian, was like not here translated.The description ends description of the instrument given by him a mechanician. R. Wolf, Geschichte der with an account of how the constituent cir- Pictet need not be repeated here, but the Astronomie (Munich 1877), p. 585 n. 11. Since the cles were centred. instrument purchased by Herschel is catalogue (Fig. 2) refers to ‘Ulric Schenck & Cie mécaniciens’in the plural,Christian may have been important not only because of its associa- associated with his brother. It is clear from Pictet’s description that the tion with him,but because no other instru- 11 12. Op cit. (note 4), p. 102. foundry work of Schenk the elder was ment by Schenk is at present known. essential to the success of the instrument, Although he survived until 1845, Schenk 13.Dictionnaire historique & biographique de las and it was no doubt for their mutual inter- Suisse ... vi (Neuchâtel, 1932), p. 1, from which I may, as the brevity of the 1815 catalogue derive all the biographical details here given. I am est that their workshops were close suggests,have produced only a small range, together. Nonetheless each had his proper grateful to Brigitte Balser, Librarian of the Musée and number,of instruments.This may have d’Histoire des Genève for providing a copy of this projects and Pictet describes briefly a small been because after 1817 he was preoccu- steam engine made by Schenk the elder,an notice and confirming that no instrument by pied by a pump-making factory that he had Schenk are known from the Museum records. engine which effected the work of one and created in Berne13. His instuments howev- 14. Pictet (note 4), p. 88. a half men for the combustion of 4 ounces er were of remarkable quality. As Pictet of wood per hour. ‘I have not seen, a wrote of his theodolite, which was similar machine of this kind better made in to that acquired by Herschel,‘This instru- 12 Author’s address: England’. ment strikes the connoisseur at first glance 24, rue du Buisson Richard by the beauty of its execution and by this From his outing to Berne, Pictet carried 78600 le Mesnil-le-Roi, France justness in the proportions which gives the back to Geneva an 8-inch repeating theodo- e-mail: [email protected] lite of Schenk’s making which he displayed whole an assured harmony’.14

Bulletin of the Scientific Instrument Society No. 78 (2003) 23 PHOTO OPPORTUNITY Queenwood College, Hampshire By Julian Holland

A little over a century ago Queenwood College in Hampshire burned to the ground and became largely forgotten. All that remains are overgrown foundations.At least that is my recollection of a brief visit to the site in 1979. Half a century before the dis- astrous fire of June 1901 Queenwood College was a pioneer of science education with four staff members and four pupils who all went on to become fellows of the Royal Society. Two accounts of the history of Queenwood College have been published,by Thompson in 1955 and Brock in 1996.1 Both of these articles illustrate a lithograph (?) of the College, originally published in The Queenwood Reporter of 15th August 1848, but I am unaware of any photograph pub- lished in the historical literature. The dis- covery of a carte de visite photograph of the College provides the opportunity to give a brief account of Queenwood.

Robert Owen founded the last of his social- Fig.1 Queenwood College, Hampshire. Carte de visite photograph by Frederick Treble, about ist communities, Harmony Hall, near 1865 (103 x 63 mm). Stockbridge in Hampshire in 1839. This was an ambitious scheme to found an agricul- tural and industrial utopia. The focus of the community was a large building designed speaking trumpet, electric jar and conduc- Tyndall and Frankland struck up an imme- by Joseph Hansom which included many tor,electromagnets,electrometer,goniome- diate friendship,attended each other’s class- modern features including central heating ter, hydrostatic balance, clinometer, barom- es and expanded each other’s scientific and ventilation. Mains water was piped to eter, stereoscope, thermometers, oxihydro- understanding. Frankland had little prior the bedrooms and the building was lit by gen microscope’.2 While many of these experience of teaching and Tyndall none, its own gas works. This imposing building were traditional items of philosophical yet both went on to become leading figures was completed in 1842 and a school was apparatus,the stereoscope at least was new, in science education in Victorian Britain in begun which included several scientific having been announced by Wheatstone addition to major research careers in chem- subjects in its syllabus, chemistry, anatomy only two years before. At that date there is istry and physics respectively. and physiology, and land surveying along no reason to suppose it was associated with with geography and astronomy. Frankland returned to Bunsen’s laboratory photography. in Marburg in October 1848 accompanied The community soon foundered and was Tulketh Hall attracted wide recognition and by Tyndall. Back in England in 1851,Tyndall abandoned in 1845. The building, howev- it is not surprising that Edmondson was returned to Queenwood pending a more er, became the basis for a new proprietori- approached to take over Harmony Hall. suitable appointment. This came when he al school under the direction of the Quaker, Edmondson moved south in August 1847 to was elected Professor of Natural Philosophy George Edmondson. Edmondson (1798- what was now called Queenwood College at the Royal Institution in May 1853, work- 1863) had received an education which after one of the farms on the estate,and set- ing with Faraday whom he eventually suc- combined book learning with manual tled in with his newly recruited staff,includ- ceeded as Director. Tyndall was succeeded instruction, a feature common to the suc- ing John Tyndall and Edward Frankland. at Queenwood by Thomas Archer Hirst cession of schools he subsequently ran. His Tyndall (1820-1893) was an Irish-born rail- (1830-1892) whom he had known since first school in Lancashire, opened in 1825, way surveyor whose path had crossed with they had worked together in Halifax in was equipped with a printing press where Edmondson while he was working for a 1846. his own texts on geography,geometry and Manchester firm of consulting engineers.3 perspective drawing were produced,along By the time Tyndall left, Queenwood’s hey- He was to teach mathematics, surveying with a school magazine. day was already past. Edmondson was and elementary physics. increasingly ineffectual as headmaster and The move to larger premises at Tulketh Hall, Frankland (1825-1899) was a rising chemist died in May 1863. The College was taken Preston, in 1841 enabled Edmondson to and had already met Edmondson in Preston. up at the beginning of the following year expand the syllabus. With new railway lines Chemistry was becoming prominent with by a new principal, Charles Willmore. By being carved and viaducted across the land- the dissemination of Liebig’s researches on then only one of the earlier scientific teach- scape,it is not surprising that surveying was agricultural chemistry and a growing ers remained,Heinrich Debus,who in 1867 prominent,and the school was equipped to emphasis on chemical analysis. Frankland moved to the new Clifton College in Bristol demonstrate the use of philosophical and was to be the chemistry teacher at as chemistry master.4 Queenwood contin- mathematical instruments. Edmondson Queenwood where the basement was to be ued to operate for the remainder of the cen- seems to have built up a considerable stock fitted out as a chemical laboratory, largely tury with no apparent distinction. of such apparatus. Much or all of the appa- equipped with apparatus he brought back ratus shown at the Preston Exhibition of The achievements of the early history of from a summer visit to Marburg in 1840 was his:‘quadrant,air pump,compass, Queenwood, however, are striking. The Germany. sun dial, terrestrial globes, electric canon,

24 Bulletin of the Scientific Instrument Society No. 78 (2003) building. A further photograph, published in 1888 (Fig. 3) shows another part of the building complex. What other early photographs of Queenwood might exist? Such a scientifi- cally precocious institution would surely have followed the development of photog- raphy with interest. The discovery of the photographic methods of Daguerre in France and Talbot in England had been announced in 1839. In the 1840s there were a number of practitioners of each technique in England. These however were few,partly from the difficulties of the tech- niques, more so perhaps from patent restrictions. Nevertheless,there is some evi- dence of interest in the chemistry of pho- tography at Queenwood. In the combined science syllabus introduced by Frankland and Tyndall in February 1848 there is men- tion of ‘the properties of metals and their alloys … their various uses in the arts’ in which there may have been some discus- Fig. 2 Photograph showing the ornate facade of Queenwood College, about 1890. The tops sion of photography.8 Later in the year we of the windows to the basement laboratory can be clearly seen. (Photograph reproduced by find the twelfth and final question of the courtesy of the Library of the Society of Friends, London; H41). chemical examination was: Give an outline of the processes employed in the production of Daguerreotype images. What is early teaching experience it gave Tyndall photograph may well have been taken as a the probable action of light upon the prepared and Frankland shaped their future careers promotional device for the College shortly plate?9 and several of the other science masters after Willmore’s arrival. The bearded figure The question was probably stimulated by also went on to professorships. Tyndall, standing in the midst of a circle of boys by Frankland’s visit to Paris over the summer. Frankland and Hirst made up a third of the the building may well be Willmore himself. When he was not sequestered in his lodg- membership of the X Club,a group of lead- While there is a structural similarity to the ings during the worst of the revolutionary ing scientists formed in 1864 which met turmoil, he was attending lectures (includ- 5 front of the building in the 1848 lithograph regularly for nearly thirty years. Tyndall, the carte de visite shows a different view. ing one on optics) and meeting local sci- Frankland, Hirst and Debus were all elect- This is made clear by comparison with an entific luminaries. Free of the patents ed Fellows of the Royal Society as were the undated but much later photograph (Fig. which limited its use in England, politician Henry Fawcett,the civil engineer 2), which shows more clearly than the Daguerrean photography was more widely James Mansergh and the mineralogist Walter lithograph the very ornate façade of the practised in Paris so it is very likely Flight (pupils during Edmondson’s time), and the electrical engineer John Hopkinson (pupil in Willmore’s period).6 The carte de visite photograph (Fig. 1) shows a relaxed scene that was no doubt carefully posed with a master and boys standing by the gate on the roadside and a view of the building beyond in its leafy Hampshire setting. The back of the photo- graph bears the printed name ‘Mr F.TREBLE, Artist’ within an oval belt and the address ‘CATHERINE STREET, SALISBURY’ on the upper section of the belt,with a hand-writ- ten inscription ‘Queenwood College – Hants / ‘The Schools’’. Frederick Treble is listed at 14 Catherine Street,Salisbury,in the J.G. Harrod & Co. Postal & Commercial Directory of 1865. The photograph is not likely to be much earlier and is certainly not much later as Treble is listed as being in the High Street in Salisbury in Kelly’s Directory of Wiltshire of 1867.7 Early photographers often styled them- selves as artists and many were also minia- turists or colourists of photographs. Whatever Treble’s background, he has cer- Fig. 3 View down ‘The Slope’, from Queenwood College, Notes of the Spring Term, 1888. tainly created a pleasing composition. The (Photograph reproduced by courtesy of the Library of the Society of Friends, London; Box 258).

Bulletin of the Scientific Instrument Society No. 78 (2003) 25 John Harrison’s Magnetic Compass

Frankland gained a first-hand experience of Maurice J. Kenn it during his stay. But there was little oppor- tunity for Frankland to engage in photo- graphic experiments at Queenwood as he John Harrison, the carpenter, lived from had already decided to return to Marburg 1693 to 1776 and is renowned for the time- in October. keeping accuracy of the numerous clocks By the time photographic materials were he made during his lifetime,three of which becoming commercially available in the were made, in wood, by 1717. early 1850s the initial impetus of the In 1718, at the age of 25, John Harrison College had subsided. Frankland was long made for himself an unusual, and unique, gone,Tyndall left in July 1853, and if any of magnetic compass.This compass,shown in their successors dabbled in photography the Figure, comprises a wooden frame, there is no record of it. 1 believed to be in pear wood,carrying a 3 /2- inch long magnetic needle, centrally pivot- If further early photographs of Queenwood 1 are to be discovered it is likely that they will ed over a 3 /4-inch diameter paper dial, also be cartes de visite. Once Treble had which is carefully inscribed,in ink,by hand. made ready all the cumbersome parapher- On top is a very thin glass cover. Sixteen nalia of wet-plate photography in Salisbury cardinal points are shown on the dial, and then travelled by horse and cart a good together with individual degree markings hour or more to Queenwood he surely took from 0° to 360°.The magnetic needle has a a series of negatives of the building and measured period of oscillation of 8 seconds, grounds. The discovery of this carte de vis- and, unusually, points to the South. ite gives promise of finding further pho- Unusually also the East and West cardinal tographs of the setting of this early Victorian points are transposed. experiment in secondary science teaching John Harrison’s compass was seen origi- in Britain. nally, by me, in Somerset, in 1957 and hence, 25 years or so later, was graciously Note: presented to its present proud and indebt- I am pleased to acknowledge the generous ed owner.The dial of this unusual compass assistance I received in the preparation of is dated 1718 and is signed by John this article. Prof.W.H.Brock delved into his Harrison.This signature and the dial letter- research notes and provided references to chemical laboratory at Marburg and went to ing have been authenticated by Andrew the photographs in the Library of the Queenwood in 1851 to replace Frankland’s succes- King who has made comparisons with Society of Friends, London, where Joanna sor,Robert Galloway. The teaching of chemical anal- other signatures on John Harrison’s con- Clark (Assistant Librarian,Pictures) was very ysis continued at Queenwood under C. Leopold temporary clock faces. I am greatly indebt- Field and Frank Clowes. expeditious in providing scans of the pho- ed to Andrew King who normally under- tographs and arranging permission for them 5.The other members were J.D.Hooker,T.H.Huxley, takes commissioned reproductions of John Herbert Spencer, George Busk, John Lubbock, and to be reproduced. William Spottiswoode. Harrison clocks in authentic replicated materials.1 6.Hopkinson cannot have been at Queenwood long, Notes and References as he followed Willmore from his previous school, This compass bears similarities to the G. 1. D.Thompson,‘Queenwood College, Hampshire.A Lindow Grove in Cheshire,and later in 1864 moved ADAMS’,mid-l8th century compass held.by mid-nineteenth century experiment in science to Owen’s College in Manchester;James Greig,John the Whipple Museum,at Cambridge,and to teaching’, Annals of Science, 11 (1955), pp. 246-54, Hopkinson, Electrical Engineer (London,1970),pp. the WALTER HAYES’1664,compass held by and William H. Brock, ‘Queenwood College 5-6. Revisited’, Science for All. Studies in the History of the National Maritime Museum, at 7. Martin Norgate, assisted by Judith Blades and Greenwich, Each of the latter compasses Victorian Science and Education (Aldershot,1996), Pamela Slocombe, Photographers in Wiltshire Article XVII, pp. 1-23. A further account with par- (Wiltshire County Council Library and Museum has been described, as a plane-table com- ticular emphasis on his subject is given by Colin A. Service, 1986), information kindly provided by pass. Russell,Edward Frankland.Chemistry, Controversy Nicola Pitman of Wiltshire County Libraries. The and Conspiracy in Victorian England (Cambridge, photograph was purchased by the author at a post- Acknowledgements 1996), Ch. 3, where the lithograph is also repro- card fair in London in August 2002. duced. In the preparation of this article I have also The G.ADAMS’compass was brought to my 9. Queenwood Reporter,15th February 1848, pp. 6- drawn on several of the papers in W.H.Brock, N.D. attention (via J.A.Bennett’s book The 7; quoted by Thompson,pp. 249-51 (at p. 249), and McMillan and R.C. Mollan, eds, John Tyndall. Essays Divided Circle) by Michael Chrimes, the by Russell, pp. 49-50 (at p. 49). The sections of the on a Natural Philosopher (Dublin, 1981). Institution of Civil Engineers’ Librarian, syllabus were The Steam Engine,Railways,Inorganic 2. Preston Exhibition 1840; quoted by Brock, p. 6. Chemistry, Organic Chemistry, Agricultural whilst the WALTER HAYES’ compass was The catalogue continues:‘The electric machine and Chemistry,and Botany and Vegetable Physiology. (I kindly brought to my notice by Gloria electromagnetic apparatus are in constant requisi- have followed the order given by Russell which dif- Clifton, the National Maritime Museum’s tion. The circular table, upon which the philosoph- fers from that given by Thompson.) ‘Railways’ Curator of Navigational Instruments, to ical apparatus is arranged, becomes in the evening included ‘Instruments; the spirit level, the theodo- each of whom I am greatly indebted. the focus towards which all visitors tend,to witness lite, the transit instrument’, presumably with some the experiments by Mr Moses Holden and other gen- practical instruction. Note tlemen, who have kindly lent their able assistance 9. Supplement to Queenwood Reporter,15th ….Cloud of Olympus,or Fire Cloud,in which waves Maurice J. Kenn, ‘John Harrison’s Unusual and October 1848; quoted by Thompson,p. 252. of fire will be seen rolling along the ceiling of the Unique Magnetic Compass’,Bulletin British Sundial room, displaying many of the prismatic colours in Author’s address Society, 14-2 (June 2002), pp. 81-82. great splendour.’ Curator of Scientific Instruments 3. Or possibly as early as 1843 while Tyndall was Macleay Museum Author’s address: based in Preston and working for the Ordnance University of Sydney 38 Corkscrew Hill Survey? New South Wales, Australia 2006 West Wickham 4.Heinrich Debus had been an assistant in Bunsen’s e-mail: [email protected] Kent BR4 9BB

26 Bulletin of the Scientific Instrument Society No. 78 (2003) Members’ Interests

This section groups by broad interpretation the interests given by members in Bulletin No 77, June 2003.

Astronomy Fox, Garin-Casanovas, Geissbuehler, George, Schwartz, Shearer, Sperling, Stabinsky, Archinard, Beauchemin, Bedini, Beech, Gilston,Griggs,Harding,Heckenberg,Heering, Stoelwinder, Stovin,Talbot,Taylor, P C,Taylor, Bennett, Brooks, Caplan, Cavalier, Chinnici, Herbst, Higton, Holland, Hoorn, Jewkes, S G, Thornton, Vaughan, Vetters, Wanderka, Clarke,Constable,Dekker,Edell,Fanta,Gilston, Kunstkammer, Maddison, McCormick, Zeidler, Zeligs Gingerich, Herbst, Howard, J, Ifland, Jensen, McKnight, Metz, Michel, Millburn, Miniati, Kitson, Lamb, Launie, Louwman, Lualdi, Mirandola, Mollan, Morrison-Low, Muse, Mining, Minerals, Materials Nagahira, Pas, Petts, Pinkerton, Pohl, Psillas, Marlborough, Mazzetti, Middents, Middleton, Cosgrove, Davies, Evans, Johnson, Mineral Roberts, Rombouts, Rudd, Rutland, Stock, Mills, Mosley, Pipping, Riekher, Robinson, Exquisit, Plummer Satterthwaite, Schechner, Science Museum Stovin, Talas, Talbot, Thomashow, Trujillo Casanas,Turner, G L’E,Vetters,Vieira,Weaver, Library,Soysa,Talbot,Torode,Vieira,Wanderka, Natural Sciences & Philosophy Watson, Wheatley, Wilkes, Wolstenholme, Wing,Wood,Zolle Alderdice, Bennett, Blondel, Braganca Gil, Zanoni Horology, Clocks, Watches, Sundials Brooks,Camp,Conquet,Dorikens,Freiburger, Gall, Garin-Casanovas, Gee, Graper, Hampton, Barratt,Blanco,Bond,Conquet,Cretney,Davis, Books & Documents, Education, Heckenberg,Heering,Heijne,Hoorn,Ketelaar, Dyos, Higton, Jayson, Kenn, Kitson, Middents, Environment McKnight, Metz, Morizet, Nagahira, Psillas, Negri,Pagter,Penney,Pipping,Rutland,Steele, Austin, Baddeley, Blankenhorn, Braga, Breker, Reid,Rienstra,Robinson,Schechner,Scuffham, Stewart Museum,Vaughan,Vieira,Vincent Cavalier, Cavicchi, Coffeen, Craig, Edwards, Stabinsky,Talas,Wanderka, Zanoni, Zoller Fishlock,Gaskell,Gee,Giordano,Gires,Herbst, Instrument Trade, Dealers, Collecting Insley, Michel, Morgan, D H, Mosley, O’Neill, Nautical Reid, Rienstra, Rootenberg, Smeltzer, Urbani, Blankenhorn, Bristow, Bryden, Burness, Casarosa, George, Haro, Miller, Reis, Ziomkiewicz Catania, Clercq, Clifton, Coffeen, Cosgrove, Schalbruch, Steinbrich-Fricke Cutler, Delehar, Dunn, G, Fox, Harding, Calculation, Measurement, Drawing Heering, Holland, Kunstkammer, Louwman, Novelties, Miscellaneous Instruments Alpern, Anthes, Blanco, Bryden, Byrne, McElyea, Meschiari, Mineral Exquisit, Miniati, Cheifetz, Crawforth-Hitchins, Delehar, Dunn, Morgan,E L,Morrison-Low,Mosley,Museum of Baddeley,Barrett, Bryden, Clark, Delehar,Dey, G, Dunn, R S, Evans, Fischer, Flynn, Gaskell, Science and Industry, Newth, PTFE Econ, Graper, Hampton, Pecker, Price, Rigby, Griggs, Havyatt, Hawtin, Heywood, Higton, Developments Ltd, Perret, M-A, Petts, Phillips, Sear,Taylor, G A,Weaver Holroyd, Jensen, Johnson, Johnston, Lloyd, Pohl, Riches, Squire, Staubermann, Steele, Machin,Millard,Miura,Morrison-Low,Museum Stock,Turner,A J,Urbani,Wolstenholme,Zeligs, Optical of Science and Industry,Niemann,Noël,Otnes, Zoller Abrahams,Allnutt,Ardourel,Bishop,Browning, Pecker, Penney, Pinkerton, Plummer, Riches, Caplan, Cavalier, Cretney, Cunnell, Dyos, Science Museum Library,Sear, Shearer, Smith, Instruments in General Handley, Hawtin, Howard, R D, Ketelaar, R,Steele,Thompson,Vaughan,Will,Williams,B Andersen, Bedini, Bedini, Blankenhorn, Braga, Kortland, Lualdi, Maxwell, Meynart, Plummer, O B,Williams, N,Wing,Wyman, Zanoni Breker, Brenni, Brieux, Casarosa, Catania, Riekher, Rienstra, Rombouts, Rubenstein, Clercq, Coffeen, Davis, Dey, Fox, Frank, Rudd, Seeger, Smeltzer, Stallard, Stoelwinder, Cartography, Navigation, Surveying Freiburger,Geissbuehler,Genteman,Giordano, Thomas,Watson Atkinson, Barrett, Blanco, Bond, Burningham, Hirsch,Kunstkammer,Marcelin,Marlborough, Clifton, Dey, Didcock, Econ, Evans, Flynn, Marsh, McElyea, Meschiari, Mollan, Morgan, D Photography, Photometry, Projection Freiburger, Geissbuehler, Hawtin, Ifland, H, Morris, Museum of Science and Industry, Baddeley, Ganz, Hackmann, Launie, Museo Jakobsen, Kenn, Kitson, Lipack, Mantua, Parkinson, Perret, M-A, Pohl, Roberts, Nazionale del Cinema, Schmidt,Will Mazzetti, Middents, Middleton, Millard, Miller, Rootenberg, Rowley,Scuffham, Staubermann, Steinbrich-Fricke,Taylor, G A,Tock,Turner,A J, Mirandola, Miura, Nowakowski, Pagter, Pas, Restoration, Museums, Preservation Jonathan Potter Ltd, Robertson, Robinson, Weaver,Wing,Wood,Wyka Rombouts, Rutland, Schnall, Shearer, Smith, J Allnutt, Andersen, Bennett, Bishop, Bond, R, Soysa, Stallard, Steinbrich-Fricke, Stewart Medical, Chemical Brenni, Bristow, Browning, Campbell, Clark, Collins, J N B, Collins, P R, Conquet, Craig, Museum, Stimson, Strauss,Wheatley,Wilkes, Alderdice, Ardourel, Brieux, Cartwright, Will Dorikens, Dyos, Ferraglio, Govaerts, Heijne, Edwards,Fishlock,Gilston,Glusman,Goddard, Hirsch, Hobday, Johnston, Katz, Ketelaar, Groot,Johnston,Kambeck,Katz,Metz,Mineral Maddison,Marney,O’Neill,Perrett,C,Phillips, Electricity, Electrical Equipment, Exquisit, Murray, Noël, O’Flanagan, Peck, Pipping, Piñeiro, Prineas, Smith, R, Squire, Communications Pinkerton, Psillas, Rootenberg, Stock,Taylor, S Sumira, Thornton, Trujillo Casanas, Brown, Cavicchi, Cheifetz, Collins, J N B, G,Thomas,Wismer, Zeligs Wolstenholme,Wood,Ziomkiewicz Constable, Gall, Govaerts, Hackmann, Hampton, Howard, J, Jaspers, Lipack, Mills, Meteorology, Weather, Barometers Telescopes, Binoculars Niemann, Nye, Perrett, C, Schmidt, Scuffham, Chalmers, Collins, J N B, Collins, P R, Cretney, ARSmachina, Abrahams, Campbell, Cutler, Smallbone, Smith, R, Squire, Stoelwinder, Davies,Dubuis,Holroyd,Insley,Kenn,Marney, Thomashow,Vanden Berghen,Zeidler Dupré, Launie, Louwman, Maddison, Marsh, Nowakowski, Schalbruch, Science Museum Robertson, Seeger,Willach Library,Stabinsky,Thornton Globes ARSmachina, Didcock, Dunn, R S, Edell, Microscopy Membership List Corrections Kambeck, Lamb, Marlborough, Middleton, ARSmachina, Ardourel, Beauchemin, Bell, Pagter, Jonathan Potter Ltd, Schmidt, Stewart The following corrections have been Bishop, Braga, Breker, Bruin, Campbell, brought to the Editor’s attention:W(illem) Museum, Sumira Cartwright, Davies, Edwards, Ferraglio, Ganz, F.J.Mörzer Bruyns should have been alpha- Gee, Giordano, Glusman, Goddard, betized under M and not under B which History, Historical Periods Greenbaum, Groot, Holland, Holroyd, Jarratt, has broken his name up unnaturally, and Kambeck,Katz,La Rue,Lipack,Lualdi,Machin, Allnutt,Austin,Beauchemin,Blondel,Braganca Dr Francisco De Haro’s correct telephone Mackinnon,Mantua,Marsh,Merico,Meschiari, Gil, Brenni, Brooks, Brown, Browning, Camp, number is 34 93 457 2058. Please notify Cartwright, Cavicchi, Cheifetz, Chinnici, Mill,Millard,Mirandola,Morgan,D H,Morizet, Naylor, OŒFlanagan, Parkinson, Pas, Petts, the Editor of any important errors in this Clarke, Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, list. Dekker, Dorikens, Dunn, G, Dupré, Eagleton, Pfennig, Piñeiro, Prineas, Riches, Robertson,

Bulletin of the Scientific Instrument Society No. 78 (2003) 27 Market Place Autumn 2003

Arthur Middleton

‘Durate, et vosmet rebus servate secundis’ (Endure, and preserve yourselves for better things.) Virgil, Aeneid, I, 207. In a previous article (‘Market Place’, Bulletin, Spring 2002), the various fortunes of the two major auction houses, Christie’s and Sotheby’s, were discussed. Alfred Taubman,majority share-holder of Sotheby’s, was sentenced to a year in jail for his part in conniving to fix the buyers and sellers pre- Above left: miums.He has now been released.He is still, Fig. 1 ‘The Visit to the apparently, head of the firm, by way of his Physician’, (detail) oil majority shareholding of the important vot- on canvas, attributed ing shares. How strange. But such is the to Gerard Thomas American way of business. Sotheby’s have (1663-1720). offered themselves for sale, but finding no willing buyer took themselves off the mar- Above: ket. Fig. 2 A silver inclining dial by The two major summer antiques fairs in Richard Glynn London, held in early June, are those at (worked 1707-1730). Grosvenor House and Olympia.They are a barometer as to the general state of the Left: trade.This year’s June Olympia in general Fig. 3 Close-up of the was not good.Yes,a few dealers did well, to signature of Richard their surprise, but as the trade press com- Glynn. mented afterwards, ‘...some dealers who spent a fortune standing at Olympia,hoping that it would save the day - will now be forced to call it a day’. One of my tasks is to the telescope only got celestial lenses,thus marked on maps from Lenin’s death in lead the small vetting committee at Olympia giving an inverted image? One irate 1924, but the item is therefore out of date- that examines, before the Fair opens to the American did buy one, once, only to find line.And how are the other globes? Grubby, public, every instrument, globe, medical that his view over San Francisco harbour spotty, or with missing areas of the map instrument, ship or engineering model that was upside-down. So the label has to state clumsily replaced with photo-copied areas is to be offered for sale. The Vetting quite clearly that the machine is for celes- obtained from elsewhere? Sorry, they just Regulations are strict but frequently need tial viewing only. A large and handsome won’t do.All this is not the best way of mak- tightening.Anything that is beyond the date- globe, a fine item as it might be, has to be ing friends.But our task is not always to crit- line (of 1914, in this case), or in such a con- rejected because it shows the map of icize and reject. One lady proudly showed dition to be considered ‘unfairworthy’has to Europe as it was after the First World War. us a Victorian side-table and lifted up the be rejected. Many general furniture dealers Since the exhibitor had little knowledge of hinged top to show the ‘abacus’inside.The will have a globe in their display, or a tele- political history, we explain, patiently, that metal rods and beads stretched all the way scope on a stand,or a brass microscope.Part it clearly shows Leningrad, formerly along, but an abacus - it was not.‘No, lady, of our job is to see if they work properly.Has Petrograd and before that St Petersburg, so what you have is a billiard-scoring machine,

28 Bulletin of the Scientific Instrument Society No. 78 (2003) Valuation day in July, inviting members of Paris,left the French specialist dealers using the public to bring in their objects of mar- un-printable phrases.None of us in London itime interest and pictures for free appraisal even knew about it. But was it that cheap, and possible sale.A team of experts from given the new stand? In hindsight,yes.How South Kensington were on hand. many Moxon globes have you seen on the market in recent years? One,a pocket globe Pictures. Portraits. Photographs. Now that sold at Sotheby’s during our visit to Rome. is a field that should interest us more.At Bordeaux,in early April,they sold a fine but In London,on the morning of 30th October unsigned late 17th century oil of a Dutch 2002,Sotheby’s offered the final items from sea-captain holding his back-staff.The sitter the Time Museum of Rockford, Illinois. was equally unknown, but nonetheless it There were just 39 Lots, and nearly every- was a good portrait. In the same sale was thing found new homes.A fine silver inclin- another oil,the interior of a physician’s con- ing dial,signed ‘Rich:Glynne Londini Fecit’, sulting room. He holds up and examines a in it’s original shagreen case,made £65,000. urine flask. His patient, a young woman, (Figs 2,and 3 detail).A gilt-brass compendi- appears to be perched on a stool and holds um in book form signed ‘Fecit Erasmus her hands protectively over her stomach. Habermel 1596’failed to reach it’s reserve Five other assistants in the background go at the rostrum,but sold afterwards to a pri- about their tasks but glance sideways, vate buyer.The afternoon began with a col- almost giggling.But almost taking your eye lection of optical instruments founded by away from the characters are a pair of 17th Isidor Nosch,opthalmologist at Freiburg in century globes (Fig. 1, detail.) the 1860s, and then added to intermittent- Fig. 4 Cross-staff baton, signed and dated ly by his heirs until the late1960s. In the Johannes van Keulen (Amsterdam) 1706. At the Hotel Drouot in March this year, in next section the surprise was a horizontal an ordinary,junk,‘everything to go’sale,was sundial by Thomas Tompion, circa 1705, a 12 inch, 30cm celestial globe by Joseph so re-write the label and you might sell it which raced away from the £5,000 to Moxon dated 1675.The table stand was a £7,000 estimate to take £42,000.Their May more easily’.(She did,on the first morning, clumsy1930s or even a 1950s re-make. to the delight of the buyer and herself.) sale at Olympia this year began with the col- There were no published estimates,but one lection of the late Hugh Orr, another dis- In France,the Commissaires-Priseurs have of the porters muttered that ‘it might make tinguished optician, curator and avid col- adjusted themselves to the new regime, 500 or 800 Euros’. (£530.00). It was about lector.The 84 assorted lots,largely different watching with private but growing envy to be knocked down for that price when a sorts of spectacles, attracted a roomful of the regular sales now being held by single telephone bidder cut in, and it was unknown buyers.Then they all got up and Christie’s and Sotheby’s in Paris. So far,nei- eventually sold to him for 10,000 Euros, left, leaving a small but hard core of instru- ther of those two houses have held a spe- about £6,670.The mysterious London col- ment dealers plus the telephone bidders for cialist science sale,but Christie’s did hold a lector,who obviously has a good contact in the rest of the sale. One item was a beauti-

Fig. 5 Silver and ivory architects instruments by George Adams, in a green shagreen case.

Bulletin of the Scientific Instrument Society No. 78 (2003) 29 Above: Fig. 6 A Large ring dial, diameter 45.5cm, almost 18”, attributed to Elias Allen, mid- 17th century.

Left: Fig. 7 An early English microscope by John Yarwell, c. 1690.

fully engraved brass horizontal sundial with developments to the steam engine during include a large pair of bridge binoculars equation of time, signed ‘O.N. delineavit his famous partnership with Mathew removed by a Royal Navy boarding party Londini Ao.MDCCXV’,or 1715.The puzzle Boulton at the Soho Works, Birmingham, from a Japanese destroyer which surren- was the name. No name beginning with N and could justly be called the Father of the dered in Penang harbour in September in Dr Clifton’s Directory fitted the time. I Industrial Revolution. The 564 lots had 1945. In the box, a document in Japanese suddenly realized that it might be a play on come directly from the family, and had dates them to 1929,a period when Zeiss of words, and found a John Owen, sun-dial belonged to Watt himself or his descen- Germany was supplying optical instruments maker, who worked between 1683 and dants. They included a mix of furniture, for the Imperial Japanese Navy.Two items 1697.It might have been his last task,made porcelain and table silver, but more impor- in their April sale this year stood out:a very for a friend during retirement, with a dis- tantly a collection of his books, pamphlets rare early English microscope by John guised signature. I was prompted by an and hand-written notes. (These are now Yarwell, dateable to 1690, of lignum vitae, early Paris maker who also had his fun,giv- being considered by the Export Reviewing paste-board and gold-tooled leather, which ing his address as ‘Au Q Couronné’, the Committee for Works of Art: although sold took £56,400 (Fig. 6), and a very large ring ‘Crowned Q’, but the word queue meant to an overseas buyer,it is unlikely they will dial, diameter 45.5cm or nearly 18 inches, something much more vulgar, as everyone be allowed to leave the country.) Amongst now attributed to Elias Allen of London, at the time realized. An ebony cross-staff the instruments were a table telescope by mid-17th century,which took £49,350 (Fig. baton,signed ‘J*V*K 1706’,for Johannes van Jesse Ramsden, (£9,600) and a Brewster’s- 7). In a horological sale at King Street in Keulen of Amsterdam (Fig.4),made double pattern kaleidoscope by Bate (£27,600). early July they dispersed the collection of estimate at £17,000, and a fine set of silver the late Professor Hall.While I cannot speak and ivory drawing instruments, signed on Over at Christie’s, their fortunes have been for the clocks (one long-case by Thomas the sector ‘Improved and Made by G. mixed since Jeremy Collins retired two Tompion made half a million pounds),most ADAMS Matht. Instrum.t Maker to His years ago. Perhaps the most interesting lot of the instruments had been tampered Royal Highness the PRINCE of WALES in in their maritime sale in May was a group with, so they only made small sums.The Fleet Street LONDON’ took a less-than- of photographs taken on board the Titanic, large mechanical library planetarium by expected £12,000 (Fig. 5). as she sailed on the first leg from Felix Delamarche (Fig. 8) made £35,250, Southampton to Queenstown (Cork), but and with it came the original Sotheby’s cat- The one Sotheby’s auction that made head- included the last known shot of her as she alogue where it had been sold in 1975. lines was their ‘James Watt:Art and Science’ departed from there, taken from the pilot sale held at Bond Street in March this year. boat two and a half miles from shore.Other Finally, I regret to report the passing of Mr Watt is renowned for his improvements and offerings were more routine, but did Bernard Howarth-Loomes,last February,ten

30 Bulletin of the Scientific Instrument Society No. 78 (2003) Current and Future Events Now extended until 10 January 2004, Greenwich, London, England The Beagle Voyages: From Earth to Mars,the exhibition at the National Maritime Museum.Information on +44 (0)20 8858 4422 or www.nmm.ac.uk Extended until 31 January 2004, Greenwich, London, England The Man Who Knew Everything, exhibition on Robert Hooke at the Royal Observatory, National Maritime Museum. Until 26 October 2003, Oxford, England Succession: Families at Work in Science, a special exhi- bition at the Museum of the History of Science, Oxford. In the past success and family succession were meant to go together.This exhibition draws on the collections of the museum to present family work in the business of science. It focuses on the makers who produced scientif- ic instruments and on the relationships which sustained and sometimes soured their careers. 30 September to 4 October 2003, Newport News, Virginia, USA XXI1 Scientific Instrument Symposium to be held at the Mariner’s Museum at Newport News,Virginia,with excur- sions to Colonial Williamsburg and Washington. For infor- mation consult the Commission’s website at http://www.sic.iuhps.org 9 October 2003, Oxford, England Public Lecture:‘Astronomy in the Family: the Herschels’. A public lecture linked to the special exhibition Succession: Families at Work in Science, by Michael Hoskin University of Cambridge on Thursday 9 October,7 pm. Admission free. Telephone the Museum (01865 277280) to reserve a seat. 18 October 2003, Oxford, England Study Day:‘Families at Work in Science’ at the Museum of the History of Science, Oxford, linked to the special exhi- bition Succession (see above). Speakers will include Dr Alison Morrison-Low of the National Museums of Scotland and Dr Stephen Johnston of the Museum of the History of Science. Charge: £15 per person (concessions £10). Enquiries: 01865 277280. th Fig. 8 A large library mechanical planetarium by Felix Delamarche, France, mid-19 24 October 2003, Oxford, England century. ‘Between the Lines’.In the second lecture in the series Dr Patricia Fara will talk about her book Newton: the Making of Genius on Friday 24 October, 7 pm.Admission free. days short of his 72nd birthday.He had been the darkened streets of an unsavoury part Please telephone the Museum of the History of Science (01865 277280) to reserve a seat. unwell for some time previously. of London in the early hours of a Friday morning. He showed me his walking stick, 24 October 2003, Edinburgh, Scotland Bernard was a leading expert in the histo- Opening of a new Communications gallery in the Royal and with a quick twist and pull of the top, ry of photography, and his advice was fre- Museum in Edinburgh funded by British out came a blade.‘I went to James Smith & Telecommunications plc.The gallery forms part of the BT quently sought by curators with photo- Sons, the umbrella makers at the top of Connected Earth Project, a network of eight museums. graphic collections.His specialty was stere- Shaftesbury Avenue.A huffy young man in a Established by BT as a means of distributing its unique col- oscopes and stereoscopic photographs,but lection across the UK while providing a virtual link suit said ‘Oh,no, sir, we don’t make those’, covered the whole range and development through a museum on the internet, launched in spring so I replied ‘Nonsense.You made my father 2002 (www.connected-earth.com). For further informa- of the art.His book Victorian Photography: one, so kindly make me one’. So they took tion contact Alison Taubman,BT Connected Earth Curator. A Collectors Guide (Ward Lock Ltd,1974) is me into a back room and measured me’.He Direct line: 0131 247 4071. long out of print,but find a copy if you can. E-mail: [email protected] never had to use it.In 1986 he attended the He dedicated it to ‘...the antique dealers and preview of an exhibition of Victorian pho- 26 October 2003, London, England ‘junk boys’ whose pati ence, tolerance and The 35th Scientific & Medical Instrument Fair will be tographs at the National Portrait Gallery.He kindness I have so frequently strained’. He held at the Radisson SAS Portman Hotel, Portman Square, took the Curator aside and pointed out that London W1, from 10:00 to 16:00 hours. Nearest was the last of the ‘Edwardian gentlemen‘ one group of pictures, portraits of appeal- Underground station is Marble Arch. Admission £4. that I had the pleasure of knowing.He was ing little girls,were fakes.Soon afterwards it Organized by Talbot Promotions, PO Box 31525, London short in stature but always immaculately W11 2XY.Telephone/fax: +44 (0)20 8969 7011. E-mail: was admitted by the photographer that the dressed,with a neat white beard and mous- Talbot.stuart.talk21.com two youngsters had been dressed in tache, and a sense of humour that shone 8 November, Greenwich, London, England Victorian costume and posed by the old through. He invariably had a pithy com- Maritime Frontiers, a one-day seminar on maritime explo- brickwork alongside Kings Cross station.He th ment,long before they became popular fun, ration from the 18 century. Speakers: Gloria Clifton, always visited the London science fairs, Gillian Hutchinson,Rob Warren,Emely Winterburn and Dr pointing out the anomalies of modern life, though recently leaning more heavily on his Clive Wilkinson. Contact Lyn Stone on 020 8312 6747. such as ‘...I had to buy a replacement part stick.We will miss his cheerful presence. 28 November 2003, London, England the other day.On the underside of the car- Electroforming Workshop at the British Museum,followed ton it said ‘Keep Upright’’.For many years, by the 11th Annual Lecture by Michael T.Wright of the if not decades, he was always an early visi- Author’s address: Science Museum at the Society of Antiquaries, Burlington tor to the Bermondsey antiques market,and 12 New Row House, Picadilly,London W1V 0LQ. became well-known to dealers there.I once Covent Garden Details of future events, meetings, exhibitions, etc.should asked him about his safety,walking through London WC2N 4LF be sent to the Editor.

Bulletin of the Scientific Instrument Society No. 78 (2003) 31 Venetian Makers of Optical Instruments of the 18th–19th Centuries Part 3 Leonardo Semitecolo and Imitators Alberto Lualdi

In the previous two articles about Venetian opticians in this Bulletin1, 1 have traced in outline the life and activity of Burlini and Selva, the two best reputed makers of the 18th century. In this note I shall discuss a few other telescope makers of whom we have signed instruments or some docu- mentation. Among what I call the ‘cheap market’ opti- cians, the name of Leonardo Semitecolo occurs by far as the most prolific and pos- sibly the longest established maker of not expensive telescopes made with rolled cardboard tubes and horn mounts.Despite the frequency of these instruments (I have examined about a hundred signed tele- scopes), very few of them bear a date or indication of when they were made.Among these, on the Semitecolo’s telescope in the Whipple Museum, the owner’s inscription (‘JamDesimo’) is followed by the year 1756; a two-metre long telescope in a pri- vate collection is dated 1779; another one bears a pasted trade label on the tube with the inscription: ‘Sorelle Valmont Fabb.Occhiali sotto Portici N° 1289, Anno 1818’ (R.Willach collection) and in the P. Louwman collection,an orange Semitecolo cardboard telescope bears a brass ring plate Fig. 1 ‘Fondamenta dell’ Osmarin’: the site where Semitecolo had his shop (and Burlini too, with the year 1848 and a dedication from see SIS Bulletin, No. 76). Count Seraph von Stadion to Duke A.W.E. von Wallenstein. Deducing from this data, In this time-span the firm had between 8-12 as we can deduce from the dated instru- the firm Leonardo Semitecolo seems to workers and apprentices:some were specialized ments and their manufacturing and deco- in manufacturing spectacles mounted in horn or have worked for almost a century. ration, the ‘last Leonardo’ (d. 1869) must in white metal while others produced cardboard have had an ancestor with the same name. Necessary and fortunate research during telescopes with horn and brass mounts; recent times in the Venice archives2 led to The most frequent signatures printed on the following discoveries: ‘Fondamenta dell’Osmarin’ is a very short ‘calle’ the telescope tubes are ‘SEMITECOLO’, (i.e. a narrow street with canal) not too far from ‘LEONARDO SEMITECOLO’, ‘DA SEMITE- a ‘Leonardo Semitecolo’ was the owner of an the Arsenale area; located at the same address of COLO’, sometimes followed by ‘VENEZIA’. optical firm near the Parish of San Zaccaria, Burlini (see SIS Bulletin No.76) it is highly prob- Deducting from the long time-span of dated Fondamenta dell’Osmarin n. 4100 (Fig. 1). able that Semitecolo took over Burlini’s shop production, it can also be assumed that his Documents prove that it existed there at least after his death in 1771. from 1830 until his death, in 1869. name was like a trade-mark for his descen- We have no proof of the existence of more dants or perhaps even for retailers,as it can His son announced carrying on the activity in than one ‘Leonardo Semitecolo’, but as far be shown from the instrument bearing the that year.

Fig. 2 Three classic Semitecolo telescopes; the one on top bears the label ‘Sorelle Valmont....Anno 1818’ (courtesy of R.Willach).

32 Bulletin of the Scientific Instrument Society No. 78 (2003) Fig. 3 A 236 cm long cardboard telescope signed ‘Fratelli Doici, Venezia’, about 1760-80 (courtesy of R.Willach).

‘Sorelle Valmont ...’ (Fig.2) label (we should cult to find two equally decorated instru- green or natural vellum. Sometime ivory remember that similarly the famous ments.Semitecolo’s telescopes are often dis- mounts are preferred to horn ones. The Lorenzo Selva declared to sign all the instru- tinguishable from other coeval instruments examined telescopes have an approximate ments made by him with his father’s name, (see further) for their bright colours (when length of 80 cm and a power of 10-15x.No i.e.‘Domenico’). maintained) of the main tube: yellow, red data about this maker were found in the and orange cardboard sheets were mostly archives. In the Semitecolo’s production we can iden- used, protected by a light lacquer. ‘ANGELO OUVO’ (sometime ‘Olivi’or ‘Ulivi’) tify at least seven different patterns of Drawtubes were covered by white or green is better known for the existence of a larg- refracting telescopes categorized by focal- vellum, but marbled or sponged paper was er number of refracting telescopes; their overall length, number of draw tubes, dec- also used in earlier (?) instruments. construction and pattern are invariably sim- oration and the use of brass. By far more Comparison among the different tooling ilar to those made by Semitecolo and common are the telescopes 2 or 3 Venetian motives shows that, although some of the 1 3 Deregni. From the archives new informa- foot (piede) long (i.e. 1 or 1 /2 braccio) , decorations seem to be exclusive of the tion has come to light: whose optical length could be obtained maker,the variability and the extraordinary with three or four draws and smaller ones, number of them make it difficult to identi- Olivo,whose name was Angelo,was the owner of 1 foot long and with lenses of small diame- fy any peculiar mark that can be ascribed an optical firm during the first half of nineteenth ter. By far rarer are longer instruments, of to Semitecolo.As has been demonstrated by century near the Parish of San Pietro Castello at which the biggest I know in existence are Turner4 for English 17th and 18th century the ‘civic number’ 1538. of more than two metres long (i.e. six optical instruments,Venetian bookbinders piedi).All telescopes have the erector and He had 5 apprentices and manufactured specta- or printers, too, supplied ready-made card- cles and telescopes. four lenses. board sheets or even ready-made rolled-up The firm was active until Olivo’s death, in 1837. In the evolution of the construction of tubes with the tooled ornaments.Tooling these telescopes,which are always made of was often added after the sheets were San Pietro Castello is on the eastern part of cheap material and of medium quality, it rolled up, as decoration covers the rim of Venice, in the island of the same name. seems that the brass sliding lids replaced the paper. Olivo produced telescopes about a Venetian braccio in length and also smaller ones of horn or bone screw caps,which were easy By far the rarer, some refracting telescopes about a piede in length. to mislay,and as a consequence,the turned bear the name of ‘ANGELO DEREGNI’ (or ferrules holding the lenses were enlarged ‘DE REGNI’) and ‘OLIVO’ (or ‘OLIVI’, A ‘TOMMASO SANTINI’ signed a six-draw for better resistance. Examining the deco- ‘ULIVI’).Concerning the former,I am famil- telescope,now in the IMSS in Florence;it is ration, the Greek fret could have, in time, iar with only a few instruments; construc- made of white and green cardboard tubes; taken the place of the more elaborate tion is very similar to Semitecolo’s as for overall length is 50 cm. Lenses are inside foliage, but both types of decorations are materials, decoration and toolings. Brown brass housing and again brass was used for sometime present. The tooling motives seems to be preferred to brighter colours the intermediate rings.5 were extremely variable so that it is diffi- for the main tube and drawtubes can be

Bulletin of the Scientific Instrument Society No. 78 (2003) 33 Fig.4 A small floral cardboard telescope, inscribed on the eyepiece tube ‘Ab.m henri Petitpierre Dessinateur l’annee 1796’(courtesy R.Willach).

The name ‘MONI[C]I in Venezia’ occurs on 4.G.L’E.Turner,‘Decorative Tooling on 17th and 18th ario di Galileo Galilei (Losanna, 1793), vol.11, p. a ‘reversed tapered’telescope (i.e.the main Century Microscopes and Telescopes’, Physis - 196. tube holds the eyepiece) in a private col- Rivista Internazionale di Storia della Scienza, 8 (1966), pp. 99-128. lection in Milan; the instrument is made Author’s address: only of two cardboard tubes with horn 5. A. Van Helden, Catalogue of Early Telescopes Dipartimento di Science della Terra (Firenze, 1999), p. 80. mounts. It is one braccio long and the Università di Pavia power is about 10x. 6.Thanks to P.Louwman, R.Willach and two private Via Ferrata collectors. 1 -271OO Pavia, Italy The name ‘FRATELLI DOLCI – Venezia’ 7. Gb. Clemente De’ Nelli, Vita e commercio letter- (Fig. 3) occurs on a few of the telescopes I e-mail: [email protected] had the opportunity to examine6; their length is between 230 and 310 cm (approx. Mystery Object 1 3 to 4 /2 braccia),and mounts and rings are made of boxwood instead of horn.The sig- nature is engraved on the objective lens. Recently on the market appeared a 3 metres long, 10-draws refracting telescope signed ‘Fratelli Dolci, Venezia 1763’.The main tube and rings are covered with green vellum and a robust turned walnut eyepiece holds the ocular.No information about this name could be found in documents,and we only know that they also made reflecting telescopes and that they died before 1793.7 Others undoubted Venetian telescopes from the last decades of 18th century and of the beginning of the 19th century were not signed. They were consistently made of cardboard and horn, some have very deco- A Mystery Object Not Too Mysterious rative hand-painted floral (Fig. 4) or black Paolo Brenni agreed with the Editor that the Fig. 1 Mysterious unsigned steel caliper. leather (simulating fish skin) main tubes, mystery object of the December 2002 three-lens erector, low magnification and Bulletin was not particularly difficult to dis- total lightness. Except a few bearing the cover. It is a late 19th or early 20th century vation’were developed at the end of the 19th name of the owner or the donor,it was not projection electrolytic cell used for demon- century,when the lecture rooms began to be possible to determine their maker. They stration.The two vertical brass holders orig- too large and too crowded for allowing the could have been made by minor spectacle- inally had two thin platinum electrodes subjective observation of phenomena. For makers to satisfy a local demand. (missing), which were dipping in the glass example, I have seen projection apparatus windowed U-shaped trough filled with This short series of papers is the results of for showing the effects of capillarity in thin acidulated water. An electric battery con- glass tubes, and capillarity electrometers. extensive research in Venetian archives,and nected with the electrodes produced the Furthermore the lines of magnetic field the examination of a large quantity of electrolysis of the water.When the appara- (magnetic shadows) were visualised with instruments which I carried out during tus was inserted in an arc lamp projector iron filings on a glass plate holding a little these last years. In time we may well find (exactly like a slide) it was possible to magnet. In this case it was necessary to use new names of Venetian optician,and possi- observe on a large screen the production of a special prismatic projection apparatus bly more and more light will be shed upon bubbles of oxygen and hydrogen.This kind because the plate had to be kept horizontal. this page of scientific instrument history. of apparatus (very similar if not identical to the one illustrated in the Bulletin) was man- This unsigned steel caliper (Fig. 1) was for- Notes and References ufactured by several British and continental merly in the collection of Ald Klut. It has a makers such as Griffin, Ducretet, Leybold, maximum length of 460 mm with a bow of 1. March and June 2003. 125 mm radius. Both hardened measuring 2.Archivio di Stato di Venezia; inv.‘Commissione di Max Kohl, Ernecke, Pellin, etc. and illustrat- ed in their catalogues.The Editor has such a pins are adjustable but cannot be secured, Sorveglianza alle Fabbriche ed Arti privilegiate nel and have a reading drum in brass and recinto di Porto Franco di Venezia’. Many thanks to device in his collection, set in a mahogany slide and part of a magic lantern projection machine rolled in divisions in fractions of the Director for his kind help and to the Director of mm. What were these calipers used for? the Archivio Storico del Patriarcato di Venezia. microscope kit. Any reader with a ‘mystery object’ should 3.A Venetian piede = 34.74 cm; a braccio = 69.48 Several instruments used for ‘objective obser- contact the Editor. cm.

34 Bulletin of the Scientific Instrument Society No. 78 (2003) VIEWPOINT Natural Philosophy and the Craft Techniques of Experimentation

Willem Hackmann

Introduction engines. Metallurgy also had to be The experimental approach to the study of improved to prevent such items from fail- nature at the heart of natural philosophy ing. Specially-constructed electrostatic owes much to craft practice. Until fairly generators made their appearance in the recently historians of science ignored any early eighteenth century after the work craft input in the same way that they of Francis Hauksbee, and a large variety ignored the study of the artifacts of science appeared over the next eighty years or - the instruments. Science was seen as a so, again involving a number of craft philosophical pursuit in which the written skills. word reigned supreme.Let the historians of technology deal with artifacts! For a more The Early Trade of Scientific rounded picture we have to move away Instruments from such stereotyping. After all, it was Dynasties of Islamic astrolabe makers have Geoffrey Chaucer, who wrote the first been established by David King and Francis English tract on the astrolabe and Richard Maddison, among others.5 Manufacture of Wallingford,who became well-known for appears to have taken place in specific his astronomical instruments, in particular locales,fulfilling courtly and religious needs, for a complicated astronomical clock of his and using well established metallurgical devising.1 techniques. In Europe in the Middle Ages, ‘scientific instruments’ such as sundials or Alistair Crombie traced the experimental drawing instruments would be made ‘in- method to the thirteenth century. house’in the monastery,in the same way as Experiments cannot be performed without Fig. 1 Engraving of Elias Allen, 1666 by they would produce their other metal uten- tools, and this would have been one entry Wenceslaus Hollar from a lost portrait by H. sils. Demand for such complex devices of craft practice into the domain of science. van der Borcht. grew in the thirteenth century with (1) the Experimental practice evolved slowly and emergence of the universities, and (2) the by the seventeenth century was well estab- 2. Optical instruments: Disregarding the growth of secular specialization (surveyors, lished.The origins of what became known ancient burning mirrors and the specta- architects navigators, etc.), leading to the as the ‘mechanical philosophy’ were com- cles of the late Middle Ages, these began development of the market in every-day plex:both the Hermetic and mathematical- with the discovery of the telescope in the instruments such as compasses drawing scientific traditions have been cited as late sixteenth century, probably in instruments, balances, set squares, levels, sources. Hermeticism, the idea that nature Middleburg in the Netherlands. etc.By the end of the thirteenth century the could be interpreted by understanding its Philosophically speaking,these were the metal-workers in Paris were already divid- occult properties, was a powerful intellec- first instruments which enlarged the sci- ed into twenty different corporations, and tual force in the Renaissance, found its entific observer’s senses (of sight),open- further increased specializations led to still reflection in alchemy,but was also to inspire ing entirely new and unimagined worlds further subdivisions.6 natural philosophers of the standing of to him.Technologically,they opened out Boyle and even of the stature of Newton. the instrument-making trade as these The diverse skills required by the instru- However, the confluence of Hermeticism devices were made from a variety of ment maker (casting and forging,engraving and mathematics on its own cannot explain materials (vellum, wood, glass, metals), and gilding, leather and wood-working, the emergence of Western-style natural phi- and required a wide variety of craft skills etc.), made it difficult for the trade to de losophy,of which experimentation formed in their manufacture.4 confined to one trade or mistery.Economic a key component.The other key element growth and the advancement of learning in was craft practice evolved from the time 3. Philosophical instruments: A seven- Europe was such that by the fifteenth cen- men took up primitive tools!2 teenth-century term,starting with the air tury instrument-making workshops began pump and electrical machine.Again look- to appear although they seldom outlived Classes of Instruments ing at this group philosophically, these Throughout the early period of the history were the first devices which made it pos- of instrument making until the emergence sible for the natural philosopher to inter- of natural philosophy, during the act actively with natural phenomena in a Renaissance, astronomy was the most laboratory environment. Such phenome- advanced discipline, and the astrolabe the na could now be manipulated, for oldest and the best-known instrument. For instance, within the confines of the bell our purposes ‘scientific instruments’can be jar of an air pump. Technically speaking broadly categorized as follows: these instruments also relied on a great variety of skills,including that of the cab- 1. Mathemical instruments: astronomi- inet maker and were at the forefront of cal, time-telling, navigational, and survey- what was technologically possible. ing.All angle-measuring instruments,orig- Several of these skills came to promi- inating from the astrolabe the most nence during the Industrial Revolution. ancient. Technologically, these instru- For instance, increasing the vacuum of ments are similar, being virtually two- the air pump relied on improved boring dimensional (apart from the armillary techniques of the barrel and the manu- Fig. 2 Engraving by Maarten van Heems- sphere!),and being manufactured from a facture of the small parts that had to be kerck, entitled ‘Human Instruments as Part limited range of metals, and using a lim- made to a very high degree of accuracy, of the Created World’, 1572. See the ‘Cover ited range of techniques which hardly developed in the manufacture of steam Story’ in Bulletin, No. 74 (September 2002). changed over a very long period of time.3

Bulletin of the Scientific Instrument Society No. 78 (2003) 35 illustrate that he catered both for the con- an air pump,a smoke jack,a diving bell,and noisseur and the bread-and-butter market: various water pumping and fire extin- as shown by his several instruments in the guishing engines.By the 1650s experimen- Museum of the History of Science in tal apparatus and machinery had become Oxford. His gilt-brass astronomical com- the centre of interest in the circle of Wilkins pendium in the form of a book with clasps, and Boyle at Oxford. Greatorex assisted signed ‘HVMFRAY COOLE MADE THIS Boyle with the development of the first BOKE + ANNO 1568’was obviously intend- English air pump before he was replaced ed for the connoisseur,while the brass sur- by Robert Hooke who moved with Boyle veyor’s folding rule,signed and dated 1575, to London. the plane table alidade, signed and dated 1582 and, most significant of all, the altaz- By the eighteenth century Britain (more imuth theodolite, signed and dated 1586 specifically London) became the centre of were for the professionals.The theodolite the instrument-making trade, losing this is one of the earliest known based on the dominance by the time of the Great ‘topographical instrument’ described by Exhibition of 1851, although we still have Fig. 3 John Brown’s The Description and Use Thomas Digges in his Pantometria (London to learn a great deal about the organization of a Joynt-Rule (1666). 1571), and illustrated in Bleau’s Atlas of of this trade. Perhaps little can be learned 1664.8 from romantic views such as the painting by Zoffany in the Queen’s collection of their founder. Certain specialities had also Cole came from the north of England, and John Cuff with assistant (1772), apart from developed into specific trades, of which was employed as an engraver and Sinker of a realization how simple much of the appa- clock and watch-making, and spectacle Stamps at the Mint.Apart from undertaking ratus was used by these skilled hands. making, are the best-known examples, usu- other engraving commissions such as for ally occurring in a specific localities.A good Jugge, he undertook to supply the instru- ‘Practical Mathematics’ a Key example is Nuremberg which became the ments described in Digges’ Pantometria. Ingredient of Natural Philosophy centre of ivory sundial making in the six- Benjamin Cole (1667-1729), a surveyor, That scion of seventeenth century experi- teenth century. At that time Nuremberg engraver,bookbinder and map-maker living mental philosophy, Robert Boyle recom- was one of the most important centres in in Oxford may well have been a relation, mended the study of mathematics. Europe for the manufacture of luxury items, especially as he practiced the same craft. However, the mathematics he had in mind especially metal goods: weapons, armour Humphrey Cole may well have been the was not the high brow mathematics of the locks, bells, clocks, musical and scientific university scholar which formed the basis instruments.Already by 1500 about 150 dif- father of the English instrument-making trade,but Elias Allen (c.1588-1653) was cer- of cosmology since the Greeks, but the ferent crafts were practiced in the city; the mathematics that would help with the prac- compass makers were legalized as a formal tainly the first truly professional mathemat- ical instrument maker (Fig. 1) who lived tical application of knowledge. It was the independent craft by the city council in mathematics not written in Latin, culmi- 1535. Nuremberg had the social and politi- solely off his products.He was apprenticed in about 1602 to the London engraver and nating in Newton’s Philosophiae naturalis cal power,the wealth,and access to the raw principia mathematica (1687), but the materials to make this possible, and the instrument maker Charles Whitwell.He may well have specialized initially in surveying mathematics in the vulgar tongue embod- development of Nuremberg’s commerce ied by such works in the minor key as John was paralleled by the increasingly varied instruments but he soon collaborated with many mathematicians and inventors in Blagrave’s Booke of the Familiar Staffe and specialized handicrafts practiced there. (1594), and (Fig. 3) John Brown’s The Such a vibrant and wealthy society is fertile putting new forms of instruments in pro- duction,including a precursor of the math- Description and Use of a Joynt-Rule ground for innovation and interest in the (1666). sciences.7 Artists,too began to take note of ematical slide rule. the significance of these devices in the Allen’s shop was the meeting place for a Boyle was interested in improving the crafts shaping of their world (Fig. 2). mathematical ‘club’. Among its achieve- by combining their trial and error methods ments was to agree upon the size of a stan- with the rational techniques of the scholar. In England there is little trace of organized He admitted freely his indebtedness to the commercial instrument making before dard English foot. He trained 14 appren- tices, who included Robert Davenport, the experience and practices of ‘tradesmen’.On Elizabeth I.The best known practitioners, the other hand, as he pointed out, natural such as Nicholas Kratzer, were aliens, who earliest recorded instrument maker in Scotland, and John Prujean, who brought philosophers in their turn had been respon- also dominated metal-working and clock- sible for creating new trades, in the manu- making in this country. The earliest instru- the trade to Oxford in the 1660s. Others that were members of the Allen dynasty of facture of telescopes, microscopes, quad- ment workshop in London was founded by rants,sectors,globes,and pendulum clocks. Thomas Gemini (fl. 1524-1562). Nothing is makers were Greatorex,Walter Hayes, and Edmund Culpeper. His contemporary natural philsophers - known about his early training or when he such as Halley and Hooke - would not dis- arrived in England.He may have worked for Ralph Greatorex (b.c. 1625, fl.1666) was sent from these views. Halley, after all, a time with Gemma Frisius and Mercator at apprenticed to Elias Allen in 1639. He is formed a public company to exploit diving Louvain. Perhaps he started as an engraver known as an important maker from the equipment to his own design for salvaging - he prepared an edition of Vesalius’ anato- diaries of Samuel Pepys and Evelyn Aubrey’s wrecks, and Hooke made numerous my in 1545 - for which he was paid £10 by Brief Lives, and he was a great friend of mechanical inventions for which he reaped Henry VIII. He may have imported his first Oughtred. He may have continued Allen’s meagre financial reward. instruments rough-cast from Louvain. business. He disappears from view shortly Possibly,he had as a pupil Humphrey Cole after the Great Fire of 1666 when he assist- High Science and Low Science: (c. 1520-1591), the best-known of the ed Sir Jonas Moore in surveying the devas- Natural Philosophy and Empiricism Elizabethan instrument makers by virtue of tated area of the City.All the instruments What the above shows is that it is not pos- the relatively large number of instruments mentioned in the literature are what we sible to make a clear-cut distinction that have survived, although certainly not would now term ‘philosophical’,and pieces between natural philosophers (those like an isolated figure.The surviving instruments of mechanical engineering:a thermometer, Boyle or Hooke that practiced so-called

36 Bulletin of the Scientific Instrument Society No. 78 (2003) ‘high science’) and the mechanics or arti- Notes and References sans (the practitioners of ‘low’ science), 1. John North,‘The Astrolabe’, Scientific American, apart that for the former it was generally an 230 (1974), pp. 96-106; his Richard of Wallingford. amateur interest while for the latter it was An Edition of His Writings with Introductions, English Translation and Commentary, 3 vols their living.The complexity of the origins nd of natural philosophy is indicated by its his- (Oxford, 1976); and his Chaucer’s Universe, 2 ed. (London, 1990). toriography. Both the Hermetic naturalist and the mathematical-scientific traditions 2. Henry Hodges, Technology in the Ancient World (Harmondsworth, 1971). have been cited as sources for the ‘mecha- nization’ of the world picture during this 3.Allan Chapman,‘A Study of the Accuracy of Scale Graduations on a Group of European Astrolabes’, period, to use Eduard Dijksterhuis’ evoca- Annals of Science, 40 (1983),pp.473-488.For early tive phrase.Thomas Kuhn in his otherwise gear-making,see J.V.Field and Michael Wright,Early admirable paper on mathematics versus the Gearing. Geared Mechanisms in the Ancient and experimental tradition produced,as the title Medieval World (London, 1985), and their paper would suggest, a rather artificial (and his- ‘Gears from the Byzantines’, Annals of Science, 42 torically sterile) distinction between the (1985), pp. 87-138. J.A. Bennett, The Divided Circle: mathematical and empirical sciences. A History of Instruments for Astronomy, Navigation and Surveying (Oxford:Phaidon,1987). A more fruitful way forward is to adopt the Robert B. Gordon,‘Metallography of Brass in a 16th perspective of the sixteenth and seven- Century Astrolabe’, The Journal of the Historical teenth centuries of what was considered to Metallurgy Society, 20-2 (1986), pp. 93-96. constitute the mathematical sciences.The 4.The references to Gerard Turner and others in subject was interpreted very broadly, Fig. 4 The Enlightenment’s view of natural Willem Hackmann,‘Instrumentation in the Theory and Practice of Science: Scientific Instruments as embracing both theory and utility,practiced philosophy: the new instruments are causing by men whom we would categorize as sci- Evidence and as an Aid to Discovery’, Annali the blindfolds to be taken off the ancient dell’Istituto e Museo di Storia della Scienza di entists and artisans, or as philosophers and philosophers in Bernard Nieuwentijt, Het Firenze, 10 (1985), pp. 87-115. mechanics.A key difference between these regt gebruik der Wereldbeschouwingen 5. David A. King, Tradition and Innovation in two groups was one of class and,therefore, (Amsterdam, 1715). See the Cover Story in Medieval Science: the Earliest Islamic Astrolabes of training and disposition. Economic and Bulletin, No. 66 (2000). (Tenth to Eleventh Centuries, Johann Wolfgang social conditions made it possible for prac- Goethe-Universität Institut für Geschichte der tical mathematics to flourish from the six- Naturwissenschaften Reprint Series No. 14 teenth century.Mathematical practitioners, (Frankfurt, 1990); and several other papers, includ- skilled in devising and using new instru- ing ‘Some Remarks on Islamic Astronomical ments, became involved in the practical maker and practical navigator Robert Instruments’, Scientiarum Historia, 18 (1992), pp. subjects vital to British (or on a broader can- Norman invented a novel device to investi- 5-23; and F.R. Maddison, A Supplement to a vas, European) colonial and economic gate the behaviour of the earth’s magnetic Catalogue of Scientific Instruments in the field to help the navigator,described in his Collection of J.A. Billmeir, Esq., C.B.E. (Oxford and expansion, such as navigation, surveying, London, 1957), and with Anthony Turner,‘Science horology, cartography, gunnery, and fortifi- The Newe Attractive, published in 1581. In the Preface he suggests that even an and Technology in Islam’,Catalogue of an Exhibition cation,and a powerful corpus of textbooks held at the Science Museum , London,April-August in the vernacular was established. In ‘unlearned Mechanician’ can contribute to 1976 in association with the Festival of Islam (not 9 England the early development was centred the mathematical sciences. His ‘dip circle’ published:privately circulated in a xerographic edi- on Gresham College in London,founded in is based on an ancient traditional astro- tion of 50 copies). Alain Brieux and Francis 1597, with its chairs of astronomy and nomical instrument - the astrolabe.Norman Maddison, Répertoire des facteurs d’astrolabes et geometry. Important were the College’s stressed that his scientific investigation was leurs ouvrages, Première partie: Islam…(Paris, in mercantile setting and its involvement with grounded in his experience as a mechanic press). practical instruction. - not to accept the authority of books,but to 6. A.J. Turner, Mathematical Instruments in rely on observations and ‘experimental Antiquity and the Middle Ages (London: Vade- Mecum Press, 1994). Conclusions truths’.It was echoed by those who applied instrumental investigation to natural phi- 7.P.Gouk,The Ivory Sundials of Nuremberg 1500- In the practice of natural philosophy we losophy. 1700 (Cambridge:Whipple Museum, 1988). have the confluence of three strands:Greek 8. All described in G.L’E. Turner, Elizabethan theory of matter as a reaction against William Gilbert wrote in the Preface of his Instrument Makers. The Origins of the London Aristotelian qualities, the metaphor of the De magnete,published in 1600,that ‘In the Trade in Precision Instrument Making (Oxford machine, and the empiricism of practical discovery of secret things and in the inves- University Press, 2000), pp. 111-173. S.Ackermann, mathematics.The latter has been dealt with tigation of hidden causes, stronger reasons ed.,Humphrey Cole: Mint, Measurement and Maps at some length.It has been noted above that are obtained from sure experiments and in Elizabethan England, British Museum practical mathematics had a strong craft demonstrated arguments,than from proba- Occasional Papers,No 126 (London:British Museum, component,but I am not just referring here ble conjectures and the opinions of philo- 1998). to the mathematical instruments made by sophical speculators’. Simple experiments 9. P.Rossi, Philosophy, Technology, and the Arts in craftsmen,but also to the manipulative skills with his ‘versorium’- a horizontally pivoted the Early Modern Era (New York: Harper & Row, that had to be passed on from the master 1970), pp. 4-5; and quoted in Willem Hackmann, iron pointer based on the compass needle ‘Attitudes to Natural Philosophy Instruments at the to his apprentices - the transference of skills made it possible for him to formulate the Time of Halley and Newton’,Polhem, 6 (1988),pp. that took place in any area of endeavour,be first working definition of an electric force 143-158. it glass-making, or alchemy. Skills required to distinguish it from magnetism - and in 10.Willem Hackmann, ‘Natural Philosophy Textbook in the study of natural philosophy,such as in this way he established the new science of Illustrations 1600-1800’, in R.G. Mazzolini, ed., Non- the manipulation of the apparatus,also had electricity,within the rubric of natural phi- Verbal Communication in Science Prior to 1900 to be passed on in the chemical or electri- losophy.From now on experiments and the (Florence: Leo S. Olschki, 1993), pp. 169-196. cal laboratory. concomitant instruments grew in com- Author’s address: plexity, until the knowledge created by Craft skills could be applied to natural phi- Sycamore House these new devices tore the blindfolds from losophy in a variety of ways.The compass The Playing Close the ancient philosophers (Fig. 4).10 Charlbury, Oxon OX7 3QP

Bulletin of the Scientific Instrument Society No. 78 (2003) 37

CHIB' ISTIE'S

A good 19th-Century hydrometer setby J.Dicas of Liverpool

Estimate £350 - 450

Scientific, Medi( al an, I Engineering Works of Art

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Auction in London: Olympia Hammersmith Road London W14 8UX  · 16 December 2003 We are now accepting consignments until early October  · Catherine Southon 020 7293 5209 Fax 020 7293 5915 [email protected]    · 020 7293 6444 www.sothebys.com Summary of Advertising Services For further information contact the Society’s Executive Officer or Jane Bigos (details on inside front cover). Jane Bigos acts as agent for all advertisements, but any services taken up will be treated as a contract with the Society.

Page rates for advertisements Other: supplied on disc: Whole page £210 Additional artwork at cost Half page £110 Classified 25p per word (minimum charge £5) Quarter page £60 Use of box number £1.50 (apply to SIS Executive officer) Eighth page £42 Flyer supplied by customer £45 Flyer supplied as artwork price on application Special mailshots - as for flyers plus postage & handling charge.

There are no direct reductions for placing advertisements in more than one issue but page rates will qualify for a 10% rebate on each set of 4 consequtive advertisement. Final copy must be with Jane Bigos no later than 4 weeks before publication, ie end January,April, July, October.All detailed arrangements to be made direct with Jane Bigos (01993 209224). Payment: Invoices wil be issued by the Society immediately after publication.Terms 30 days after date of invoice. The Society is not VAT registered.

Full Working Model - 60mm dia. POCKET RING DIAL Exquisitely Made from Brass & Steel, with Full Operating Instructions An Ideal Present for Anyone Interested in Sundials

UK Price £19.99 plus £1.00 pp

Leonard Honey, 22 Heathview, London N2 0QA

Phone/Fax 0208 883 8696, email l.honey @virgin.net

Bulletin of the Scientific Instrument Society No. 77 (2003) Table of Contents

Appropriate material wil be referenced in Physics Abstracts

Editorial ...... 1 Cover story ...... 1 Announcements ...... 2 Instruments in Scotland and Scottish Instruments...... A. D. Morrison-Low 4 SIS Annual Study Conference to Scotland, 29th April-3rd May 2003 ...... 12 Ulrich Schenk, a forgotten Swiss instrument-maker...... Anthony Turner 22 Photo Opportunity: Queenwood College, Hampshire...... Julian Holand 25 Members interests...... 27 Market Place Autumn 2003 ...... Arthur Middleton 28 Current and Future Events ...... 31 Venetian Makers of Optical Instruments of the 18th-19th Centuries. Part 3 Leonardo Semitecolo and Imitators ...... Alberto Lualdi 32 Mystery object...... 34 Natural Philosophy and the Craft Techniques of Experimentation...... Willlem Hackmann 35

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