Equatorial Sextant

Description:

Patent model for William Austin Burt, new equatorial sextant, U.S. Patent 16,002 (1856). This instrument could apparently be used to take azimuths, altitude, and time with one observation, and thus enable one to easily obtain the position and bearing of a ship at sea. It was ingenious, but never found much of a market. Burt is better remembered for the solar compass that he introduced in the 1830s.

Ref: John S. Burt, They Left Their Mark. A Biography of William Austin Burt (Rancho Cordova, Ca., 1985), pp. 128-130.

Date Made: 1856

Maker: Burt, William A.

Location: Currently not on view

See more items in: Medicine and Science: Physical Sciences, Science & Mathematics, Navigation, Measuring & Mapping, Invention and the Patent Model, Patent Models

Exhibition:

Exhibition Location:

Data Source: National Museum of American History

Id Number: PH.309166Catalog Number: 309166Accession Number: 89797Patent Number: 16,002

Object Name: equatorial sextantObject Type: Patent Model

Measurements: overall: 11 7/8 in x 10 1/4 in x 5 5/8 in; 30.1625 cm x 26.035 cm x 14.2875 cmoverall: 12 in x 11 in x 5 in; 30.48 cm x 27.94 cm x 12.7 cm

Guid: http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ng49ca746aa-16eb-704b-e053-15f76fa0b4fa

Record Id: nmah_1167859

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