Navisphere Celestial Globe

Description:

The Navisphere was designed to be "a nautical instrument of extremely simple construction and easily handled, by means of which nearly all the complex nautical problems may be solved in a few minutes, and without calculation, or, at least, with very little calculation." It consists of a celestial globe that shows only the brightest stars, with a brass superstructure (the Metrosphere) that represents the horizon and two meridians. Henri DeMagnac, a captain in the French navy who was interested in the problems of navigation, probably came up with the original design. Frederic William Eichens, an instrument maker in Paris, obtained a French patent for it in 1878, an American patent in 1881, and other patents in England and Germany. An inscription on This example reads "NAVISPHERE / DE / . . . / F. W. EICHENS CONSTR / E. BERTAUX, ÉDITEUR / PARIS."

Ref: F. W. Eichens, "Celestial Globe," U.S. patent #247,811.

H. De Magnac, "Le navisphere - instrument nautique," Revue Maritime et Coloniale 61 (1879): 598-616.

H. De Magnac, Le Navisphere: instrument nautique, instruction pour son usage (Paris, 1881); and The Navisphere (England, 1881).

Location: Currently not on view

See more items in: Medicine and Science: Physical Sciences, Navigation, Measuring & Mapping

Exhibition:

Exhibition Location:

Data Source: National Museum of American History

Id Number: 1989.0189.03Catalog Number: 1989.0189.03Accession Number: 1989.0189Patent Number: 247,811

Object Name: globe

Physical Description: iron (overall material)paper (overall material)silver (overall material)Measurements: average spatial: 21.9 cm; 8 5/8 inoverall: 13 in x 9 in; 33.02 cm x 22.86 cm

Guid: http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ng49ca746a9-0254-704b-e053-15f76fa0b4fa

Record Id: nmah_1064793

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