Octant

Description:

Octant with mahogany frame, flat brass index arm with ornate floral pattern, and ivory name plate. The ivory scale is graduated every 20 minutes from -5° to +95° and read by vernier to single minutes of arc. There is also a back sight and a back horizon glass that could be used to measure angles greater than 90°. The "QUINCY, MAKER, N. YORK" inscription refers to J. Quincy, a mathematical instrument maker in New York City in the 1780s. In the stepped wooden box is a trade card of William Hooker, who operated a nautical shop in New York around 1820.

Ref: Deborah J. Warner, "American Octants and Sextants: The Early Years," Rittenhouse 3 (1989): 86-112, on 107.

Date Made: ca 1800

Maker: J. Quincy

Location: Currently not on view

Place Made: United States: New York, New York City

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

Exhibition:

Exhibition Location:

Data Source: National Museum of American History

Id Number: 1988.0412.01Catalog Number: 1988.0412.01Accession Number: 1988.0412

Object Name: octant

Measurements: radius: 18 in; 45.72 cmoverall in case: 4 13/16 in x 18 5/8 in x 21 1/4 in; 12.22375 cm x 47.3075 cm x 53.975 cm

Guid: http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ng49ca746aa-6d29-704b-e053-15f76fa0b4fa

Record Id: nmah_1197604

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