Science & Mathematics

Chemical Balance

The Museum's collections hold thousands of objects related to chemistry, biology, physics, astronomy, and other sciences. Instruments range from early American telescopes to lasers. Rare glassware and other artifacts from the laboratory of Joseph Priestley, the discoverer of oxygen, are among the scientific treasures here. A Gilbert chemistry set of about 1937 and other objects testify to the pleasures of amateur science. Artifacts also help illuminate the social and political history of biology and the roles of women and minorities in science.

The mathematics collection holds artifacts from slide rules and flash cards to code-breaking equipment. More than 1,000 models demonstrate some of the problems and principles of mathematics, and 80 abstract paintings by illustrator and cartoonist Crockett Johnson show his visual interpretations of mathematical theorems.

Topic: Drawing Instruments

Keuffel & Esser 510 Beam Compass

This German silver instrument has steel and brass points. Two trammels have thumbscrews for fastening to a wooden bar (not included) and for attaching one of the five points. One trammel has a micrometer and is marked on the front: KEUFFEL & ESSER Co. N.Y. GERMANY.
Description
This German silver instrument has steel and brass points. Two trammels have thumbscrews for fastening to a wooden bar (not included) and for attaching one of the five points. One trammel has a micrometer and is marked on the front: KEUFFEL & ESSER Co. N.Y. GERMANY. The back is marked: PARAGON. Above this mark is scratched: CE1RD. Compare this mark to 1978.2110.02.
The attachments include a pencil point, an adjustable pen point, two steel needle points, and one brass needle point. A rectangular wooden case is covered with morocco leather and lined with green velvet. The bottom of the case is marked: GERMANY.
K&E sold this instrument as model number 510 at least as early as 1892, but the Paragon brand was not introduced until 1901. By 1936 the points were stainless steel instead of steel. The price with case was $10.25 in 1909.
References: Catalogue of Keuffel & Esser Co. , 23rd ed. (New York, 1892), 34; Catalogue of Keuffel & Esser Co. , 33rd ed. (New York, 1909), 69; Catalogue of Keuffel & Esser Co. , 36th ed. (New York, 1921), 66; Catalogue of Keuffel & Esser Co. , 38th ed. (New York, 1936), 107, 121.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1901-1936
maker
Keuffel & Esser Co.
ID Number
1978.2110.03
accession number
1978.2110
catalog number
336729

T-Square

A wooden bar (6-1/8" x 2" x 3/4") is attached to a flat wooden handle (17-7/8" x 2" x 1/8") by nine wooden pegs. By the 17th century, draftsmen used T-squares to help them draw horizontal lines.
Description
A wooden bar (6-1/8" x 2" x 3/4") is attached to a flat wooden handle (17-7/8" x 2" x 1/8") by nine wooden pegs. By the 17th century, draftsmen used T-squares to help them draw horizontal lines. The instrument was also used in conjunction with a set square or triangle to draw vertical and diagonal lines. The dating of other objects from this donor suggests this object was made about 1900. Compare to MA.328397 and MA.328398.
Reference: Maya Hambly, Drawing Instruments, 1580–1980 (London: Sotheby's Publications, 1988), 113.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1900
ID Number
MA.328396
accession number
272517
catalog number
328396

Needle Point

This metal object has vertical scrolling on its upper part and horizontal scrolling on a collar near the needle point. It would have fit onto one leg of a drawing instrument, such as a compass, and it probably dates to the early 20th century.Currently not on view
Description
This metal object has vertical scrolling on its upper part and horizontal scrolling on a collar near the needle point. It would have fit onto one leg of a drawing instrument, such as a compass, and it probably dates to the early 20th century.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
early 20th century
ID Number
1981.0933.27
accession number
1981.0933
catalog number
1981.0933.27

Drawing Compass

This 18th-century brass drawing instrument appears to be mostly handcrafted. The needle point is relatively broad, and the pen point is shaped like a spade. Both legs are decorated with four horizontal lines, and the leg with the needle point is engraved with a horseshoe.
Description
This 18th-century brass drawing instrument appears to be mostly handcrafted. The needle point is relatively broad, and the pen point is shaped like a spade. Both legs are decorated with four horizontal lines, and the leg with the needle point is engraved with a horseshoe. Both sides of both legs have an apparently intentional gouge shaped like a triangle. The joint is round with a ridge around the bottom.
Reference:
Sotheby & Company, Catalogue of a Collection of Scientific Instruments, the Property of the Late Henry Russel Wray, London, 1959 (a copy of the catalogue is in the accession file).
Location
Currently not on view
date made
18th century
ID Number
MA.316928
accession number
219305
catalog number
316928

Pelikan Graphos Pen with Nibs

This 4-5/16" black plastic pen has a metal pocket clip and is marked in script: Pelikan Graphos GERMANY. The end is unscrewed from one side, revealing a metal holder for a pen nib, and screwed to the other side. The tip of the holder is marked: 3.
Description
This 4-5/16" black plastic pen has a metal pocket clip and is marked in script: Pelikan Graphos GERMANY. The end is unscrewed from one side, revealing a metal holder for a pen nib, and screwed to the other side. The tip of the holder is marked: 3. Nineteen different nibs may be attached to the pen. They each are marked: MADE IN GERMANY. They are also marked: Pelikan (/) GRAPHOS (/) GÜNT . . . NER. They are also marked: IMPORTE D'ALLEMAGNE. Each nib is marked with its size; brass inlays indicate the width for seven of the nibs (those for drawing fine lines).
The set is in a wooden bar-lock case covered in black leather and lined with dark blue velvet. The top of the case is marked: Pelikan (/) Graphos. The bottom of the case is marked: MADE IN GERMANY (/) IMPORTE D'ALLEMAGNE.
Carl Hornemann opened a color and ink factory in Hanover, Germany, in 1838. The company began using a pelican as its trademark in 1863 and first offered a fountain pen in 1929. The Graphos was manufactured in the form illustrated by this object between 1934 and 1957. This set was probably made in the early part of this time frame. The nibs were designed for technical drawing and lettering. Rotring took over the Graphos brand in 1978, but Pelikan remains in operation as of 2013.
References: Pelikan, "History," http://www.pelikan.com/pulse/Pulsar/en_US.Pelikan.timelineInitView.136400./history; Annina and Andreas Schenk, "Pelikan Graphos," http://www.kalligraphie.com/909-0-Pelikan-Graphos.html.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1934-1957
maker
Pelikan
ID Number
1989.0305.02
accession number
1989.0305
catalog number
1989.0305.02

F. W. Starr Drawing Instrument

This large ferrous metal object, painted black, has four curved legs and an indented central support that holds a flat slide. Moving the slide rotates two linked steel bars at the front (any scribe attached to these bars that would actually draw a curve is missing).
Description
This large ferrous metal object, painted black, has four curved legs and an indented central support that holds a flat slide. Moving the slide rotates two linked steel bars at the front (any scribe attached to these bars that would actually draw a curve is missing). A long metal handle with a brass spring and knob at the front moves above the slide. Its motion is controlled by a projection into a curved crosswise indentation, and controls the motion of the slide in the central support and the rotating bars.
A mark on the handle reads: STARR. A mark on the handle at the point of the crosswise indentation reads: PATD JAN 29 95. A metal tag attached to the top of the handle at the back reads: SOLD BY (/) THE (/) HISTORICAL (/) PUBLISHING (/) CO. (/) DAYTON, OHIO.
On January 29, 1895, Ferdinand W. Starr of Springfield, Ohio, was granted patent number 533,095 for his improvement to drawing instruments. His invention, he said, would draw parallel lines, angles, circles, ellipses, and more. Use of Starr’s patent by The Historical Publishing Co. of Dayton was the subject of patent infringement litigation in 1912 and 1913. Starr also used the patent in the design of a smaller ellipsograph that was sold in the early twentieth century by Queen and Company of Philadelphia and by Eugene Dietzgen Company of Chicago.
F. W. Starr was born in Germany in 1846, immigrating to the United States when he was an infant. According to the 1900 census records, he was the manager of a cutting machine, lived in Springfield, Ohio, with his wife of 20 years, Alice, and their five children. He received two other patents, in 1901 for a cutting instrument, and 1904 for a machine for cutting curved pieces. He died in 1938 at the age of 92.
This example of Starr’s instrument was found unprocessed in the Engineering collections and transferred to Mathematics in the early 1980s.
References:
Ferdinand W. Starr, “Drawing-Instrument,” U.S. Patent 533095, applied for December 23, 1893, granted January 29, 1895.
“Starr v. Houser et al” Federal Reporter, Saint Paul: West Publishing, 1912, pp. 730-732.
“Houser v. Starr,” Federal Reporter, St. Paul: West Publishing, 1913, pp. 264-275.
“The Queen-Starr Ellipsograph,” The Railway Age, vol. 39 #6, February 10, 1905, p. 202.
Catalogue of Eugene Dietzgen Company, Chicago: Dietzgen, 1907-1908.
Biographical information about Starr may be gleaned from sources in ancestry.com
Location
Currently not on view
ID Number
2019.3036.01
nonaccession number
2019.3036
catalog number
2019.3036.01
patent number
533095

Dietzgen 967A Beam Compass

This steel instrument is plated with chromium and stored in a leatherette pocketbook case lined with purple velvet. The inside of the flap is marked: DIETZGEN. The back of the case is marked: GERMANY.
Description
This steel instrument is plated with chromium and stored in a leatherette pocketbook case lined with purple velvet. The inside of the flap is marked: DIETZGEN. The back of the case is marked: GERMANY. The beam compass consists of a solid tubular beam, 13" long and 3/16" in diameter; a second solid tubular beam, 6" long and 3/16" in diameter; a coupling for joining the beams with a thumbscrew; a needle point with a micrometer adjustment; a second needle point; a pencil point; a pen point; and a cylindrical case holding one extra lead and two additional needles. The handles on the points are cylindrical with a honeycomb pattern. The thumbscrew on the needle point with micrometer is marked: DIETZGEN GERMANY.
The Eugene Dietzgen Co., a Chicago manufacturer and retailer of mathematical instruments, advertised the model 967A "Champion" brand beam compass and case in the late 1930s for $8.50. Dietzgen may have purchased instruments in the Champion line from Bayerische Reisszeugfabrik, a company in Nuremberg, Germany, that was owned by Joseph Dietzgen and made ECOBRA brand slide rules. See 1984.1071.04.
References: Catalog of Eugene Dietzgen Co., 15th ed. (Chicago, 1938), 141; Dietzgen Essential Drawing Instruments and Materials, cat. no. 38A (Chicago, [1939]), 11.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1938
maker
Ecobra
ID Number
1984.1071.02
accession number
1984.1071
catalog number
1984.1071.02

Curve for Drawing a Hyperbola, Keuffel & Esser 2182

This small, flat unpainted wooden pear wood curve has a hyperbolic top edge and a straight bottom. There are two holes along the axis. A mark on one side reads: 2182.
Description
This small, flat unpainted wooden pear wood curve has a hyperbolic top edge and a straight bottom. There are two holes along the axis. A mark on one side reads: 2182. Another mark on the same side reads; KEUFFEL & ESSER (/) N.Y.
Keuffel & Esser’s model 2182 was a set of pear wood curves of hyperbolas in eight sizes, ranging from 2 to 5 1/2 inches in depth. This is the 3 ½ inch size. Keuffel and Esser sold ellipses, hyperbolas and parabolas made from pear wood from at least 1892 until at least 1913. By 1921, such curves were available from K & E only in xylonite.
References:
Keuffel & Esser Company, Catalog, New York, 1892, p. 151.
Keuffel & Esser Company, Catalog, New York, 1909, p. 226.
Keuffel & Esser Company, Catalog, New York, 1913, p. 203.
Keuffel & Esser Company, Catalog, New York, 1921, p. 147.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1900
maker
Keuffel & Esser Co.
ID Number
1985.0112.229
catalog number
1985.0112.229
accession number
198540112

Open Triangle

This unmarked 8" 30°-60°-90° triangle with an open interior is made of two different woods, with a section of darker wood laid between two sections of lighter wood. The dating of other objects from this donor suggests the triangle was made around 1900. Compare to MA.335330.
Description
This unmarked 8" 30°-60°-90° triangle with an open interior is made of two different woods, with a section of darker wood laid between two sections of lighter wood. The dating of other objects from this donor suggests the triangle was made around 1900. Compare to MA.335330. Neither Keuffel & Esser nor the Eugene Dietzgen Company advertised triangles like this one. James W. Queen of Philadelphia did offer walnut or mahogany triangles with a maple inlay, but the firm did not sell the instrument in the 8-inch size.
Reference: James W. Queen & Co., Priced and Illustrated Catalogue of Mathematical Instruments (Philadelphia, 1883), 51.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1900
ID Number
MA.335329
catalog number
335329
accession number
305958

Schoenner Wallet Case of Drawing Instruments

This folding cardboard case is covered with green leather and lined with blue velvet. The back of the case is marked: 1905. Inside the lid flap, the left end is marked in silver: THE SPECIAL. A drawing of a sword runs through the words.
Description
This folding cardboard case is covered with green leather and lined with blue velvet. The back of the case is marked: 1905. Inside the lid flap, the left end is marked in silver: THE SPECIAL. A drawing of a sword runs through the words. The right end of the flap was missing when the set was received by the Smithsonian, but originally it likely was marked with the name of the retailer. The set includes:
1) 6-1/4" German silver compass with bendable legs and removable pencil and pen points. The central joint is marked: PATENT (/) MARCH 17 (/) 1903. Inside one leg is marked: C 36. Inside the other leg is marked: SCHOENNER ||. The ends of the pencil and pen points that insert into the compass leg are marked: 36 C. A latch on the pen point for widening the point is marked: PAT.FEB.4.04.
2) 6" German silver and steel dividers. The central hinge is marked: PATENT (/) MARCH 17 (/) 1903. Inside the other leg is marked: SCHOENNER ||.
3) 3-1/2" German silver extension bar. The end that inserts into the compass leg is marked: 36 C.
4) 4-3/8" and 5-1/2" ebony, German silver, and steel drawing pens. A latch on the point of the longer pen is marked: PAT.FEB.4.04.
5) 3-1/4" German silver and steel bow dividers, bow pencil, and bow pen.
6) 1-3/8" cylindrical metal case with three leads.
7) 1-1/8" blue metal joint tightener.
Schoenner was an instrument maker in Nuremberg, Germany, that particularly targeted the U.S. market. The firm held the rights to the March 17, 1903, patent, which covered the design of the pivot joint on drawing compasses. Georg Schoenner Jr. applied for the patent mentioned on the pen latches on February 4, 1904, and received it on June 14, 1904. For company history, see 1989.0305.05.
References: Wilhelm Schwarzer, "Compass" (U.S. Patent 723, 041 issued March 17, 1903); Georg Schoenner Jr., "Ruling Pen" (U.S. Patent 762,848 issued June 14, 1904).
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1905
maker
Schoenner, Georg
ID Number
1977.1101.0097
catalog number
1977.1101.0097
accession number
1977.1101

Set of 5 Japanese Scale Rules Signed Fujishima

A rectangular paulownia wood case has a red and white sticker on the right end marked: No. 45 (/) M. Inside the case are four bamboo rulers, three that are just over 12" (about 31 cm) long and one that is 2-1/4" (15.5 cm).
Description
A rectangular paulownia wood case has a red and white sticker on the right end marked: No. 45 (/) M. Inside the case are four bamboo rulers, three that are just over 12" (about 31 cm) long and one that is 2-1/4" (15.5 cm). A fifth rule is made of a darker wood, perhaps cherry.
The first rule is marked in Japanese: Made by Fujishima. It is also marked: 3000. The scales along both edges are identical, 30 cm long, divided to twentieths of a unit, and numbered by hundreds from 0 to 2,400. The back of the rule is stamped in red: METRE. It is also marked: 1 (/) 3000.
The second rule is made from a dark wood and is marked in Japanese: Made by Fujishima. The scales are identical and labeled: 1/16. They are divided to half-units and numbered by fives from 5 to 190. Each increment of five units is 5/16" (8 mm) long.
The third rule is marked in Japanese: Made by Fujishima. It is also marked: 1800. The scales along both edges are identical, 30 cm long, divided to single units, and numbered by tens from 0 to 540. The back of the rule is stamped in red: METRE. It is also marked: 1 (/) 1800. It is also marked: 5.
The fourth rule is marked in Japanese: Made by Fujishima. It is also marked: 1600. The scales along both edges are identical, 30 cm long, divided to single units, and numbered by tens from 0 to 480. The back of the rule is stamped in red: METRE. It is also marked: 1 (/) 1600. It is also marked: 6.
The scales on the fifth and shortest rule are 2" (5 cm) long, divided to single units, and numbered by tens from 0 to 40. The rule is marked on the back: 1/800. It is also stamped in red: 3.
These rules were likely used in engineering and architectural drawing. Compare to MA.261283, MA.261284, MA.261286, and MA.261287. The rules were exhibited by the Japanese Empire Department of Education at the 1876 Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia. They then were displayed by the Museum of the U.S. Bureau of Education until 1906 and transferred to the Smithsonian National Museum in 1910. For more information, see MA.261298 and MA.261313.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
before 1876
maker
Fujishima
ID Number
MA.261285
catalog number
261285
accession number
51116

Set of Drawing Instruments

This wooden case is covered with black leather and lined with purple velvet. Several circles have been drawn on the top of the lid.
Description
This wooden case is covered with black leather and lined with purple velvet. Several circles have been drawn on the top of the lid. The velvet inside the lid folds out to reveal a 6-3/4" wooden straight edge; a 3-1/2" metal L-shaped square; a 3-3/8" metal semicircular protractor divided to single degrees and numbered by tens from 10 to 170; and a 6" ivory plotting scale with one scalloped end. The plotting scale has diagonal scales at both ends. Above it are scales divided to 1/10" and numbered by ones from 6 to 1, and divided to 1/12" and numbered by tens from 50 to 10. The back of the plotting scale has a scale of chords and scales dividing the inch into 45, 40, 35, 30, 25, and 20 parts.
The bottom of the case has four pairs of German silver and steel dividers. Two pairs have a removable leg and are 5-3/8" long, one pair has fixed legs and is 4-7/8", and one pair has a removable leg and is 3-3/4". A pencil point is a little bit too short for the longest dividers, and a pen point is a little bit too long for the longest dividers. Another pen point and pencil point fit the shortest pair of dividers. A 2-3/4" drawing pen has a very short cylindrical handle. Three empty slots suggest that some of the original instruments in the set are missing. One slot is round for a ceramic cup; compare to 1990.0115.01.
The set was found in the Museum collections in 1979 with objects that suggest an association with Cleveland Abbe (1838–1916), an American engineer, astronomer, and meteorologist who worked for the U.S. Weather Service from 1871 until shortly before his death.
Reference: accession file.
date made
19th century
ID Number
1979.0876.01
catalog number
1979.0876.01
accession number
1979.0876

Combination Retractable Pen and Pencil

This 3-3/4" ornate square silver handle has two slides. One extends a round holder in which a pencil lead appears to be inserted.
Description
This 3-3/4" ornate square silver handle has two slides. One extends a round holder in which a pencil lead appears to be inserted. (Similar instruments sometimes had pricking points for use in creating and duplicating engineering drawings.) The other slide extends a pen point.
The top of the handle unscrews so that the user can adjust a ring collar marked with the first letters of the days of the week (in French): L, M, M, J, V, S, D. The ring sits atop 7 columns of 4–5 numbers (1, 8, 15, 22, 29; 2, 9, 16, 23, 30; 3, 10, 17, 24, 31; and so on). By adjusting the ring, one can use these numbers as the calendar for any month. The dates of objects purchased with this writing instrument and the increasing availability of metal nibs suggest it was made in the late 18th century.
References: Howard Dawes, Instruments of the Imagination: A History of Drawing Instruments in Britain, 1600–1850 (n.p.: The Dawes Trust Ltd., 2009), 5.
Sotheby & Company, Catalogue of a Collection of Scientific Instruments, the Property of the Late Henry Russel Wray, London, 1959 (a copy of the catalogue is in the accession file).
Location
Currently not on view
date made
late 18th century
ID Number
MA.316934
accession number
228694
catalog number
316934

Queen and Company Railroad Curves

This is a set of thirty-eight railroad curves, instruments used to draw track curves on railroad maps. The long edges of the curves are arcs of circles. A number stamped on a curve indicates the radius of the corresponding circle in inches.
Description
This is a set of thirty-eight railroad curves, instruments used to draw track curves on railroad maps. The long edges of the curves are arcs of circles. A number stamped on a curve indicates the radius of the corresponding circle in inches. The numbers are: 6, 8, 10, 13, 15, 18, 20, 23, [missing: 25], 28, 30, 33, 35, 38, 40, 43, 45, 48, 50, 53, 55, 58, 60, 63, 65, 68, 70, 73, 75, 78, 80, 83, 85, 88, 90, 93, 95, 98, 100. Hence the radii of the circles range from six inches to one hundred inches. The letter Q is also stamped on each of the curves. This corresponds to the trademark of James W. Queen & Company of Philadelphia, as shown on the cover of an 1887 catalog of the company.
Queen and Company sold railroad curves from at least 1874 (they are not listed in the firm’s 1859 or 1868 catalogues). A drawing in the 1880 and 1883 catalogues suggests that the hard rubber versions of these curves were marked: J.W. Queen & Co., rather than with the Q trademark. A set of forty-three curves of wood is mentioned in the 1874, 1876, and 1877 catalogs, and described more precisely in the 1880 and 1883 catalogs. The earlier catalogs indicate only that the set included 43 curves with radii ranging from 3 ½ inches to 200 inches. The later catalogs describe the specific radii, which do not progress as in this set. Queen also sold sets of curves to order, and this might be one of those. The trademark stamped on the instruments is one that appears on the title page of 1887 and 1893 James W. Queen catalog, but not on either earlier or later catalogs.
This set of curves came to the Smithsonian from the physics department of Bowdoin College. Authorities there suggested that it might date from the period 1871 to 1883, when Gen. Joshua L. Chamberlain served as president of the college. He tried to start an engineering program, with an emphasis on civil engineering. This program ended when Chamberlain left, and engineering instruments might have been distributed to science departments. While Queen was selling railroad curves during the time of Chamberlain’s presidency, it is not clear whether it was using the Q logo found on this particular set of curves.
References:
Accession File.
James W. Queen & Co., Priced and Illustrated Catalogue of Mathematical Instruments, Philadelphia and New York, 1874, p. 51.
James W. Queen & Co., Priced and Illustrated Catalogue and Descriptive Manual of Mathematical Instruments and Materials, Philadelphia, 1876, p. 52.
James W. Queen & Co., Priced and Illustrated Catalogue of Mathematical Instruments..., Philadelphia, 1877, p. 52.
James W. Queen & Co., Priced and Illustrated Catalogue and Descriptive Manual of Mathematical Instruments and Materials, Philadelphia, 1880, p. 52.
James W. Queen & Co., Priced and Illustrated Catalogue..., 1887. pp. 76-78, title page.
James W. Queen & Co., Catalogue of Mathematical and Engineering Instruments and Materials, Philadelphia, 1893, pp. 89-91, title page.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1890
Associated Name
Bowdoin College. Department of Physics
maker
Queen and Company
ID Number
2003.0047.01
accession number
2003.0047
catalog number
2003.0047.01

Metric Set Square

This 6-3/8" brass rule unfolds to form a set square. The outer edge of one leg has a centimeter scale numbered by ones from 1 to 16. It is marked: Nelle Mesure. The outer edge of the other leg has a scale for French inches (approximately 1-1/16") numbered by ones from 1 to 5.
Description
This 6-3/8" brass rule unfolds to form a set square. The outer edge of one leg has a centimeter scale numbered by ones from 1 to 16. It is marked: Nelle Mesure. The outer edge of the other leg has a scale for French inches (approximately 1-1/16") numbered by ones from 1 to 5. The first unit is divided into twelfths. The scale is marked: 6 Pouces. This leg has a pinhole for hanging a plumb bob and a rectangular hole with a rounded end (approximately 15/16" long) for viewing the plumb bob. The square has no maker's mark.
For a brief history of squares, see MA.316929. Typically, the legs were marked with scales for measuring lengths. What is unusual about this square is that it has both a traditional French measure and a unit from the newly introduced metric system, which is denoted as a "nouvelle mesure," or "new measure." The metric system was created in France in the 1790s, after the French Revolution of 1789. This suggests a date of about 1800 for the instrument.
Albert Haertlein (1895–1960), who collected this square, graduated with a bachelor's degree in civil engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1918. He served in the engineering corps of the U.S. Army during World War I and taught engineering at Harvard from 1919 until 1959. Haertlein was prominent in the American Society of Civil Engineers.
References: "News From the Classes," Technology Review 21 (1919): 645; Albert Haertlein, Papers, HUG4444, Harvard University Archives, Cambridge, Mass.
Entry 1985.0580.05.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1800
ID Number
1985.0580.01
accession number
1985.0580
catalog number
333926

Irregular Curve or French Curve

This is one of eight flat wooden irregular curves contained in a box with museum number 1979.0992.01. It is stamped at the base: 12. The curves are on the outside and within a single inner opening.Currently not on view
Description
This is one of eight flat wooden irregular curves contained in a box with museum number 1979.0992.01. It is stamped at the base: 12. The curves are on the outside and within a single inner opening.
Location
Currently not on view
ID Number
1979.0992.08
accession number
1979.0992
catalog number
1979.0992.08

Straight Edge Signed Eberhard Faber

This undivided, black hard rubber rule is beveled along both long edges. It is marked: EBERHARD FABER (/) NEW YORK. John Eberhard Faber (1822–1879) began making pencils in New York City in 1861. In 1872 his factory moved from Manhattan to Brooklyn, where it remained until 1956.
Description
This undivided, black hard rubber rule is beveled along both long edges. It is marked: EBERHARD FABER (/) NEW YORK. John Eberhard Faber (1822–1879) began making pencils in New York City in 1861. In 1872 his factory moved from Manhattan to Brooklyn, where it remained until 1956. The company also made and sold other office supplies, expanding in 1898 by forming the Eberhard Faber Rubber Company of Newark, N.J., to make erasers and rubber bands. Compare this object to MA.319738.
Reference: Donald G. Presa, "Eberhard Faber Pencil Company Historic District Designation Report," New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission, 2007, http://www.nyc.gov/html/lpc/downloads/pdf/reports/Eberhard_Faber.pdf.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
early 20th century
maker
Faber, Eberhard
ID Number
MA.327306
accession number
266152
catalog number
327306

J. L. Hammett Co. Open Triangle

The interior of this 20-1/2" 30°-60°-90° fiberboard triangle is divided into two open triangles that are approximately 45°-60°-75° and 30°-45°-105°. The hypotenuse is marked: J. L. HAMMETT CO. (/) CAMBRIDGE, MASS. (/) NEWARK, N.J. The instrument is sized for blackboard use.
Description
The interior of this 20-1/2" 30°-60°-90° fiberboard triangle is divided into two open triangles that are approximately 45°-60°-75° and 30°-45°-105°. The hypotenuse is marked: J. L. HAMMETT CO. (/) CAMBRIDGE, MASS. (/) NEWARK, N.J. The instrument is sized for blackboard use. It has no markings for measuring angles or lengths.
John Hammett began selling erasers and slating paint for chalkboards in Rhode Island in 1863, moving to Boston in 1865. In 1890 new owners expanded the firm into all forms of paper school supplies. Now called the J. L. Hammett Co., the firm opened factories in New York, New Jersey, and Massachusetts after 1895; moved its headquarters to Braintree, Mass., in 1967; and operated over 50 retail stores from 1974 to 2005. Neither this drawing instrument nor MA.304722.44 appear in Hammett catalogs published between about 1870 and 1903. The Department of Mathematics at Brown University gave this object to the Museum in 1973.
References: Bill Lane, "School Supplier J. L. Hammett to Close Stores," Boston Business Journal, January 4, 2005, http://www.bizjournals.com/boston/stories/2005/01/03/daily12.html; "J. L. Hammett Company," The Play and Playground Encyclopedia, http://www.pgpedia.com/j/jl-hammett-company.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1895-1967
maker
J. L. Hammett Co.
ID Number
MA.304722.45
catalog number
304722.45
accession number
304722

Proportional Dividers

This instrument has brass slides with steel points. On one end, the points are 3/8" long; on the other, they are 1-3/4" in length. The longer points are corroded.
Description
This instrument has brass slides with steel points. On one end, the points are 3/8" long; on the other, they are 1-3/4" in length. The longer points are corroded. Thumbscrews on both sides adjust the instrument along a gear and tooth mechanism (or "rack movement") on the back slide. The front slide is marked on both sides of the slot with what appears to be a single proportional scale for lines: 1/2, 1/3, 1/4, 1/5, 1/6, 7, 8, 9, 10. A wooden case fastened with brass hooks is lined with dark blue velvet. Red lines and numbers are on the bottom of the case. No legible maker's mark is present.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1900
ID Number
1986.0316.01
accession number
1986.0316
catalog number
1986.0316.01

Dod Protractor and Parallel Rule

This brass semicircular protractor is divided by single degrees and marked by tens from 10° to 90° to 10°. It is attached with metal screws to a set of brass parallel rules. Brass S-shaped hinges connect the rules to each other.
Description
This brass semicircular protractor is divided by single degrees and marked by tens from 10° to 90° to 10°. It is attached with metal screws to a set of brass parallel rules. Brass S-shaped hinges connect the rules to each other. The bottom left screw on the parallel rules does not attach to the bottom piece. A rectangular brass arm is screwed to the center of the protractor. A thin brass piece screwed to the arm is marked with a small arrow for pointing to the angle markings. The protractor is stored in a wooden case, which also contains a pair of metal dividers (5-1/4" long).
The base of the protractor is signed: L. Dod, Newark. Lebbeus Dod (1739–1816) manufactured mathematical instruments in New Jersey and is credited with inventing the parallel rule protractor. He served as a captain of artillery during the Revolutionary War and made muskets. His three sons, Stephen (1770–1855), Abner (1772–1847), and Daniel (1778–1823), were also noted instrument and clock makers. The family was most associated with Mendham, N.J. (where a historic marker on N.J. Route 24 indicates Dod's house), but Dod is known to have also lived at various times in Newark.
ID number MA.310890 is a similar protractor and parallel rule. Compare also to a Dod instrument owned by the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, http://www.metmuseum.org/Collections/search-the-collections/5535.
References: Bethuel Lewis Dodd and John Robertson Burnet, "Biographical Sketch of Lebbeus Dod," in Genealogies of the Male Descendants of Daniel Dod . . . 1646–1863 (Newark, N.J., 1864), 144–147; Alexander Farnham, "More Information About New Jersey Toolmakers," The Tool Shed, no. 120 (February 2002), http://www.craftsofnj.org/Newjerseytools/Alex%20Farnham%20more%20Jeraey%20Tools/Alex%20Farnham.htm; Deborah J. Warner, “Surveyor's Compass,” National Museum of American History Physical Sciences Collection: Surveying and Geodesy, http://americanhistory.si.edu/collections/surveying/object.cfm?recordnumber=747113; Peggy A. Kidwell, "American Parallel Rules: Invention on the Fringes of Industry," Rittenhouse 10, no. 39 (1996): 90–96.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
late 1700s
maker
Dod, Lebbeus
ID Number
1978.2110.06
accession number
1978.2110
catalog number
336732

Set Square Signed Chapotot

This 6-1/2" brass rule unfolds to form a set square. The outer edge of one leg has a scale for German inches (roughly 1-1/32 English inches), numbered by ones from 1 to 6. The first unit is divided into twelfths. The scale is marked: Demy pied de Rhin [half a foot of the Rhine].
Description
This 6-1/2" brass rule unfolds to form a set square. The outer edge of one leg has a scale for German inches (roughly 1-1/32 English inches), numbered by ones from 1 to 6. The first unit is divided into twelfths. The scale is marked: Demy pied de Rhin [half a foot of the Rhine]. The inner edge of this leg has a scale numbered by tens from -10 to 50. The first unit is divided into tenths. The scale is marked: Eschelle [scale]. This leg is also marked: CHAPOTOT A PARIS.
Both edges of the other leg have scales for French inches (roughly 1-1/16 English inches), numbered by ones from 1 to 6. The first unit on the outer edge is divided into twelfths. The leg is marked: Demy pied de Roy [half a foot of the French king]. This leg has a pinhole and a larger hole (1/4" diameter) for hanging plumb lines. Compare to 1985.0580.03, 316929, 317362, and 316914.
Louis Chapotot and his son, Jean, were prolific instrument makers with a workshop at Quay de l'Horloge du Palais à la Sphère Royale in Paris. Louis is known to have been active around 1670 to 1700, and Jean worked from about 1690 to 1721.
Albert Haertlein (1895–1960), who collected this square, graduated with a bachelor's degree in civil engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1918. He served in the engineering corps of the U.S. Army during World War I and taught engineering at Harvard from 1919 until 1959. Haertlein was prominent in the American Society of Civil Engineers.
References: J. A. Bennett, "New Acquisition: 'La planchette,'" Sphaera no. 9 (Spring 1999), https://www.mhs.ox.ac.uk/sphaera/issue9/articl4.htm; Adler Planetarium, Webster Signature Database, http://historydb.adlerplanetarium.org/signatures/; "News From the Classes," Technology Review 21 (1919): 645; Albert Haertlein, Papers, HUG4444, Harvard University Archives, Cambridge, Mass.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1670-1721
maker
Chapotot, Louis
Chapotot, Jean
ID Number
1985.0580.02
accession number
1985.0580
catalog number
333927

Set of Drawing Instruments

This large wooden case is lined with yellow silk and velvet. The inside of the case is marked: R. H. HRONIK.
Description
This large wooden case is lined with yellow silk and velvet. The inside of the case is marked: R. H. HRONIK. A wooden tray lifts out and holds:
1) 8-1/8" German silver and steel proportional dividers, marked for lines from 1/10 to 11/12 and for circles from 7 to 20.
2) 5-1/4" German silver dotting pen with clear plastic handle.
3) 5-1/4" German silver and steel drawing pen with black plastic handle. The tightening screw is marked: POST'S (/) GERMANY. The Frederick Post Company of Chicago began importing and distributing drawing instruments and slide rules in 1890.
4) 4" German silver and steel dividers with removable points and needle and pencil point attachments.
5) Four pencil leads, ranging from 1-1/2" to 4-1/4". The longest is marked: L. & C. HARDTMUTH, Inc. KOH-I-NOOR 3H. Joseph Hardtmuth began making earthenware in Vienna, Austria, in 1790 and expanded into graphite leads in 1802. The firm moved to České Budějovice, now in the Czech Republic, in 1848 and concentrated exclusively on pencils from 1870. It remains in business as of 2013 as Koh-i-Noor Hardtmuth.
6) 6-1/4" German silver and steel dividers with removable points and extension bar, dotting point, pencil point, needle point, and pen point attachments.
7) 7-1/4"metal trammel bar for a beam compass, with two 7" extensions, divider point, pen point, two pencil points, and screw-on needle point.
8) Key with metal tag engraved on one side: R. H. HRONIK. The other side is engraved: DRAFTING SET.
9) 3" ivory, German silver, and steel bow compass missing both needle points.
10) 5-1/4" German silver and steel tripod fixed-leg dividers.
11) 1-1/2" cylindrical metal case with five pieces of pencil leads and 1-3/8" cylindrical metal case with six pencil leads.
12) 1-3/8" loose steel needle point.
Empty spaces in the tray indicate that at least the following items are missing from the set: 5" dividers, 3-1/2" bow pencil, 3-1/2" bow pen, trammel point, 5" drawing pen, and 4" ruling pen. Additionally, the two pens in the tray are shorter than their slots and so likely are replacements. A piece of paper in the bottom tray has a handwritten note in ink that was probably prepared by Smithsonian staff: R. H. HRONIK (/) part of same (/) accession (/) late 1890's (/) not later than 1902.
The donor, Richard H. Hronik (1911–2003), was born in St. Louis to Joseph J. (1888–1972) and Gladys Hronik. He grew up in Cedar Rapids, Ia., and graduated from Iowa State College in 1934, where he belonged to the Alpha Mu chapter of Theta Chi fraternity. He was a major in the U.S. Army from 1942 to 1946. He held a number of patents in transportation engineering and did design work relating to railroad systems built for the Indian government. By 1962, he worked for Melpar, Inc., located in Falls Church, Va., as a materials science engineer. He gave at least 129 pieces of electronics equipment; drafting, woodworking, and machine tools; and calculating machines to the Smithsonian in at least three separate accessions.
The set may have been owned by Hronik's grandfather, Frank Hronik (1860–about 1939), who was born in Bohemia (now the Czech Republic), moved to Cedar Rapids in 1884, and by 1900 was a railroad machinist for the Burlington, Cedar Rapids, and Northern Railway, which was succeeded by the Chicago, Rock Island, and Pacific Railway in 1903. In 1887 he married Mary Hronik, who was born in Bohemia in 1864 and brought to this country by her parents in 1867.
Reference: Koh-i-noor Hardtmuth, "History," http://www.koh-i-noor.cz/en/history.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1900
ID Number
MA.326146
accession number
257457
catalog number
326146

Set Square Signed Pierre Le Maire

This 6-7/8" brass rule unfolds to form a set square. The outer edge of one leg has a scale for French inches (roughly 1-1/16 English inches), numbered by ones from 1 to 6. The first unit is divided into twelfths and numbered by threes from 3 to 12.
Description
This 6-7/8" brass rule unfolds to form a set square. The outer edge of one leg has a scale for French inches (roughly 1-1/16 English inches), numbered by ones from 1 to 6. The first unit is divided into twelfths and numbered by threes from 3 to 12. The scale is marked: demy pied de Roy [half a foot of the French king]. The inner edge of this leg has a scale for English inches numbered by ones from 1 to 6. The first unit is divided into twelfths and numbered by threes from 3 to 12. The scale is marked: demy pied des Londres [half a London foot].
This leg is also marked: Pre le Maire (/) AParis. It has a pinhole for hanging a plumb bob and a rectangular hole with a rounded end (approximately 1" long) for viewing the plumb bob. The other leg has a diagonal scale, numbered vertically by ones from 1 to 10 and horizontally by twenties from 100 to 20, and a plotting scale that is numbered by hundreds from 100 to 900. Each unit is about 9/16" long. The plotting scale has eleven horizontal lines; the sixth line is marked "5" at each unit of the scale.
Pierre Le Maire (1717–1785) took over his father Jacques's workshop in the late 1730s. Large numbers of his sundials, mathematical instruments, and lodestones survive. Albert Haertlein (1895–1960), who collected this square, graduated with a bachelor's degree in civil engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1918. He served in the engineering corps of the U.S. Army during World War I and taught engineering at Harvard from 1919 until 1959. Haertlein was prominent in the American Society of Civil Engineers.
References: Nicholas Bion, The Construction and Principal Uses of Mathematical Instruments, trans. Edmund Stone (London: for John Senex, 1723), 12, Plate 2; Adler Planetarium, Webster Signature Database, http://historydb.adlerplanetarium.org/signatures; "News From the Classes," Technology Review 21 (1919): 645; Albert Haertlein, Papers, HUG4444, Harvard University Archives, Cambridge, Mass.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1735-1785
maker
Le Maire, Pierre
ID Number
1985.0580.03
accession number
1985.0580
catalog number
333928

Set of Drawing Instruments Sold by Sears Roebuck

This unpolished wood and cardboard case is wrapped in packaging tape added by the donor for transporting the instruments. The set includes:1) 5-1/4" and 4-1/4" steel drawing pens. The tightening screws on the spring blades are marked: SEARS ROEBUCK GERMANY.2) 6" steel dividers.
Description
This unpolished wood and cardboard case is wrapped in packaging tape added by the donor for transporting the instruments. The set includes:
1) 5-1/4" and 4-1/4" steel drawing pens. The tightening screws on the spring blades are marked: SEARS ROEBUCK GERMANY.
2) 6" steel dividers. A pin in one leg latches to the other leg. The hinge is marked: SEARS ROEBUCK GERMANY.
3) 6" steel compass with one jointed leg and removable pencil point, pen point, and jointed lengthening bar. All parts except the pencil point are marked: SEARS ROEBUCK GERMANY. The lengthening bar is also marked: HAB. A divider point is apparently missing.
4) 3" metal handle. The remainder of this instrument, which had a point, is apparently missing.
5) 2" and 1-1/4" cylindrical metal cases. The larger has one graphite lead, one needle point, and two tops for screws. The smaller holds 5 graphite leads.
6) 3-3/4" bow dividers, bow pen, and bow pencil.
The donor (b. 1949) reported that his great-grandfather, Henry Arthur Botkin, owned this set. Botkin lived in Missouri and East Texas before the instruments were damaged in a 1903 family house fire. The case may thus be a later replacement and possibly is handmade.
The date of the instruments is uncertain. After advertising only watches and jewelry from 1888 to 1893, Sears Roebuck began issuing a general catalog in 1894. These objects do not resemble any of the drawing instruments advertised in the Spring 1896 (pp. 467–468), Fall 1897 (pp. 369–370), Fall 1899 (pp. 175–177), or Spring 1905 (pp. 370–371) Sears Roebuck catalogs. The bow pen, pencil, and dividers appear to have first been advertised in Spring 1911 (p. 746). This style of drawing compasses and pens still was not depicted by Spring 1914 (p. 792), when the outbreak of World War I interrupted the import of drawing instruments made in Germany. In Fall 1920 (p. 1200), Sears Roebuck offered a set of instruments like these (with only one lead case and no handle) from Keuffel & Esser's Pilot brand for $15.35. However, when European imports resumed in Spring 1921 (p. 602), none of the instruments advertised resembled these. By Spring 1925 (p. 507), Sears Roebuck sold Schoenner instruments.
Reference: "History of the Sears Catalog," http://www.searsarchives.com/catalogs/history.htm.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
early 20th century
distributor
Sears, Roebuck and Co.
ID Number
1978.0226.01
catalog number
336490
accession number
1978.0226

Our collection database is a work in progress. We may update this record based on further research and review. Learn more about our approach to sharing our collection online.

If you would like to know how you can use content on this page, see the Smithsonian's Terms of Use. If you need to request an image for publication or other use, please visit Rights and Reproductions.