The pantograph is a drawing instrument used to enlarge and
reduce figures.It was devised by the
Jesuit astronomer and mathematician Christoph Scheiner in 1603 and described by
him in a 1631 publication. Scheiner’s instrument was of wood. Pantographs were
soon made elsewhere in Europe of brass. French makers also introduced ebony
forms of the instrument.
As the collections at Harvard University demonstrate,
pantographs sold in the United States by the late eighteenth century. The
examples in the NMAH collections date from the nineteenth and twentieth
century. They were imported from Great Britain, France, Germany, and
Switzerland – with a few patented and sold in the U.S.
The principle of the pantograph was adopted in machines used
by printers to enlarge and reduce the size of etchings. It also found
applications in textile design and in an early device used to punch cards for
statistical tabulation. Devices in roughly the shape of a pantograph have been
used on trains since th nineteenth century.This object group does not attempt to describe these applications,
although searching the NMAH collections database for the term “pantograph”
brings up some relevant objects.
References:
Christoph Scheiner,Pantographice
seu ars delineandi (Rome, 1631).There is a copy of this volume in the Smithsonian’s Dibner Library.A digital version is available online.
Stephen Johnston, “Pantograph,” Instruments of Science:
An Historical Encyclopedia, ed. Robert Bud and Deborah Jean Warner, New
York & London: Garland Publishing, 1998, pp. 435-437.
Excellent articles on the pantograph and on Scheiner, with
extensive references, are online on Wikipedia.
Pantographs are still available for purchase. At the same
time, museum collections across the world include historic examples.
This brass pantograph consists of four linked rods with rectangular cross section. The two longer rods are about 49.5 cm. (19 ½ inches) long. The two shorter rods are about 9 inches and ten inches long. Marks near the ends of the rods away from the fulcrum read: B; D; [nothing]; C. Two adjacent rods (those marked B and D) are marked from 11:12 to 2:3 near one end and from 1:2 to 1:12 further up. Slides on these rods carry round holders. A round stone disc placed into the fixed outermost holder anchors the pantograph. A tube with a cup at one end fits into either of the two remaining round holders (the tube would hold a pencil point; the cup would hold pebbles, shot, or some other weight to keep the pencil on the paper). The tracer point which would go in the other holder is missing. The pantograph moves over the paper on four ivory wheels. A mark on the top of one arm reads: Cary London. The instrument fits in a shaped wooden case.
According to Gloria Clifton, from 1789 until 1891 William Cary, his descendants, and their associates in London sold instruments, including a pantograph, under the name Cary.
This instrument was once at the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago.
Compare MA.317868, MA.327891, MA.334888, and 2005.0182.8.
Reference:
Gloria Clifton, Directory of British Scientific Instrument Makers 1550-1851, Zwemmer, 1995, p. 51.
This pantograph has four linked brass bars with rectangular cross section. The longer bars on the outside are 26 ½ inches long, the shorter bars on the inside 13 ¼ inches long. Two arms on the pantograph are marked for reducing and enlarging, both having with one scale ranging from ½ down to 1/12 and a second scale going from 11/12 down to 2/3. Once the wheels are screwed in, the pantograph slides along a table. This example has a tracer point but no pencil point and no weight. A mark on one arm reads: Cary London. It fits in a shaped wooden case.
Compare MA.317868, MA.327891, MA.334888, and 2005.0182.8.
According to Gloria Clifton, William Cary, his descendants and their associates in London sold instruments, including a pantograph, under the name Cary from 1789 until 1891.
Reference:
Gloria Clifton, Directory of British Scientific Instrument Makers 1550-1851, Zwemmer, 1995, p. 51.
This brass pantograph is stored in a wooden case with a lock (key missing) and two hook latches. Two arms are marked from 1/2 to 11/12. The instrument moves on six ivory rollers (one is missing). It is held together with screws. The pencil or tracer slides along one arm while the other point is stationary. An iron weight covered with black felt anchors the pantograph. The pencil holder has a cup at the top to hold weights to darken the pencil writing. There are no holes for the string.
Engraving on one bar of the pantograph reads: John L. Wilson, No. 2. A tag on the front of the lid reads: PROPERTY OF (/) UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH (/) PITTSBURGH, PA 15213.
Compare MA.317868, MA.327891, MA.334888, and 2005.0182.8.
This instrument has four black wooden bars. Two are 19 5/8" (50 cm.) long. The other two are 11 1/4" (8 cm.) long. The brass fulcrum joining the two longer bars rests on an ivory wheel. One short bar is attached to each long bar, about half way down its length. The short bars are joined opposite the fulcrum. An iron weight attaches to one of the long bars, a pencil is attached to one of the short bars, and a tracer attaches to a long bar. The position of the weight and the pencil are moved to change the amount of enlargement or reduction. A black thread may be strung between various joints. The instrument fits in a plain wooden case which has a brass handle and metal hinges and fasteners. A mark on the back rim of the case reads: $28.00. An instruction book in French has museum number MA.211531.02.
According to the documentation, this pantograph was designed by L. Blondeau, a geographical draftsman employed by the Bureau des Cartes et Plans of the French Ministry of War. It was manufactured by Molteni & Cie., opticians and manufacturers, which had the address 13 Boulevard St. Denis in Paris. L. Blondeau took out his French patent for a pantograph in 1841, the same year that the firm Molteni & Cie. was established. Molteni & Cie. was at the address 13 Boulevard Saint-Denis in 1844, but by 1854 had moved to another address. Assuming that the instructions were printed at the same time the pantograph was made, this dates the instrument and the instructions to the period 1841-1853.
This pamphlet describes and illustrates the operation of a pantograph designed by L. Blondeau, a geographical draftsman employed by the Bureau des Cartes et Plans of the French Ministry of War. According to the instructions, the instrument was manufactured by Molteni & Cie., opticians and manufacturers, which had the address 13 Boulevard St. Denis in Paris. L. Blondeau took out his French patent for a pantograph in 1841, the same year that the firm Molteni & Cie. was established. Molteni & Cie. was at the address 13 Boulevard Saint-Denis in 1844, but by 1854 had moved to another address. This dates the instructions to the period 1841-1853.
A pantograph is a mechanical device for copying images. The "W. & S. Jones” inscription on this example is that of a firm that was in business in London from 1791 to 1859, offering a wide range of mathematical, optical, and philosophical instruments. According to the accession file, this is one of a group of objects made in the third quarter of the nineteenth century. Hence the rough date assigned. The file also indicates that the pantograph was used by the U.S. Coast Survey for plotting courses.
This is the patent model for a drawing devices granted U.S. Patent 21,041 to William W. Wythes on July 27, 1858. “Be it known that I, WILLIAM WYTHES, of the city of Philadelphia and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and Improved Instrument for Drawing and Copying.” (U.S. Patent Application). The Smithsonian also owns a patent model by Wythes for a cloth-measuring machine (U.S. Patent 18313). (The original patent drawings and descriptions can be viewed at Google Patents.) Special about this patent model is that the inventor has engraved “Wm W Wythes, inventor” on the large brass disc on the model.
Wythes was awarded a degree in medicine from Philadelphia College of Medicine in July 1851. He served as an assistant surgeon in the U.S. Volunteers, part of the Union forces, during the Civil War and was singled out in the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, 1861--1865, as having been a notable member of the Asylum General Hospital in Knoxville during the war.
An oval shape, the ellipse is one of the four conic sections, the others being the circle, the parabola, and the hyperbola. Ellipses are important curves used in the mathematical sciences. For example, the planets follow elliptical orbits around the sun. Ellipses are required in surveying, engineering, architectural, and machine drawings for two main reasons. First, any circle viewed at an angle will appear to be an ellipse. Second, ellipses were common architectural elements, often used in ceilings, staircases, and windows, and needed to be rendered accurately in drawings. Several types of drawing devices that produce ellipses, called ellipsographs or elliptographs, were developed and patented in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
The inventor claimed that the device could draw not only ellipses, but also epicycloids and spirals, thus the “cylco" in the title of the model. An epicycloid is the curve traced by a point on the circumference of a circle as it rolls about another circle. (See Schilling models 1982.0795.01, 1982.0795.02, 1982.0795.03, and 1982.0795.05 in the National Museum of American History collection.) As the name also implies, this device could be used as a pantograph, a mechanical devices used to copy line drawings. As the original drawing is traced, the pencil attached to the opposite end of the devices produces, through a series of linkages, a copy. The copy can also be scaled up or down in size. One common application of a pantograph (before the advent of computers) was to reduce the size of a drawing for use in minting money. For example, the original line drawings found on U.S. bills were full-size drawings. They were reduced and etched in order to be printed. Pantographs were also used, notably by Thomas Jefferson, for making a copy of a letter as the final draft of the original was being written out.
The Wythes Cyclo-Ellipto-Pantograph consists of a wooden beam of 38 cm (15 in) long. At one end is a large vertical brass disc with gear teeth on the back. This gear turns a horizontal disc that is attached to a brass beam under the device. There are two movable pieces along the beam. One is the pivot point of the device, under the wooden handle. The other is the writing point below the horizontal brass disc placed along the beam. As the large disc at the end of the beam is turned, the gears cause a chain (similar to a miniature bicycle chain) to circulate along the length of the beam. As the long brass beam beneath the device turns, the smaller brass beam below the movable disc traces a similar shape. By adjusting the location of the pivot point and the small horizontal disc, various shapes are formed. However, it is not clear that all the claims of the inventor are warranted. It appears that only portions of curves or ellipses can be generated. The device was offered in the J. W. Queen “Illustrated Catalogue” of 1859.
Resources:
Announcement of the Philadelphia College of Medicine, for the Collegiate Year, 1854-5, (Philadelphia: King and Baird, 1854), 13.
Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, 1861-1865, (Washington, D.C.: National Archives, Microcopy 262, 1959), 537.
This instrument consists of four flat wooden bars.Three bars are eighteen inches long, and one is ten inches long. Each bar has a set of irregularly spaced holes that are marked from ½ to 1/16.One of long bars has a metal and wooden piece at one end with points on the bottom for fixing it to table. Another long piece has metal pointer through one end. The third long piece has rounded metal piece through one end which can be used to secure it to a second bar. With three additional joints of this sort and a pencil point, the device could be used as a simple pantograph, an instrument for enlarging and reducing drawings.
The object has no maker’s mark. It was transferred to the Smithsonian from the U.S. Geological Survey in 1907.
For an example of a pantograph with similar scales, see the 1859 catalog of J. Molteni & Cie.
Reference:
J. Molteni & Cie., Catalogue et Pris Courant des Principaux Produits, Paris, 1859, p. 59.
The pantograph consists of four black wooden rods joined by brass joints. Two are 19 5/8" (50 cm.) long. The other two are 11 1/4" (8 cm.) and 9 ¼: (23.5 cm.) long. The brass fulcrum joining the two longer bars rests on a metal wheel. One short bar is attached to each long bar, about half way down its length. The short bars are joined opposite the fulcrum. An iron weight attaches to one of the long bars, a tracer point is attached to one of the short bars, and a tracer point attaches to the other long bar (why neither of these is a pencil point is unclear). The positions of the weight and the points are moved to change the amount of enlargement or reduction. There are some holes for a thread to help in aligning the points, but not a sufficient number – and the thread is lacking The instrument fits in a plain wooden case which has a brass handle and metal hinges and fasteners. Two adjacent rods are marked from 1:2 to 1:8. Another tracer point on a slide and with a metal point that fits into a support for a brass wheel is in the wooden case. Also in the bag are 2 metal pieces which have apparently broken off of the pantograph. The case also contains a 16cm X 10cm lead weight, which is placed on one of the outer legs as an anchor.
A mark written in ink on the inside of the lid reads: Property of the (/) United States (/) Surveyor General’s Office.
Compare MA.333850 to MA.314869, which it closely resembles. The latter pantograph was designed by L. Blondeau, a geographical draftsman employed by the Bureau des Cartes et Plans of the French Ministry of War. It was manufactured by Molteni & Cie., opticians and manufacturers in Paris. Because of the close similarity in the design and details of the two pantographs, it seems very likely that this pantograph also was manufactured by Molteni. That firm sold pantographs of this design from the 1840s until at least 1859 – perhaps until the firm dissolved in 1899. The United States Surveyor General’s Office was established in 1796 and operated until the 1920s.
Lucien F. Bruce and Newlan J. Wolcott received U.S. Patent 118,902 for this “Improvement in Pantographs.” This is their patent model. It consists of eight metal bars, two 21.6 cm. long and six 11 cm. long. Holes in the bars and suitable pivot points allow one to alter the enlargement or reduction of the image. A pivot-post on the right side at the center (now missing) held the instrument to a drawing-board or table at the desired height. To enlarge drawings, once the bars were suitably set, a tracer-point was placed at the joint nearest the pivot-post. The drawing point was on the same line, at the joint furthest from the pivot-post. To reduce drawings, the tracer point and drawing point were reversed. No points survive.
Lucien F. Bruce (1835-1910) and Newlan J. Wolcott were employees of the Springfield Armory in Springfield, Massachusetts. Bruce spent over fifty years at the Armory and took out a variety of patents. City directories indicate that Wolcott spent the years from 1859 to 1872 in Springfield and suggest that he eventually moved to Lowell, Massachusetts.
References:
US Patent 118902, September 12, 1871.
“Obituaries,” Machinery, vol. 16, May, 1910, p. 784.
City Directories for Springfield and for Lowell in Massachusetts.
This brass pantograph consists of four rods. These rods are marked near their ends as follows: B; D; [nothing]; C. The adjacent B and D rods are both marked with scales that range from 1-2 to 1 to 12. There are screwed slides for them (one is loose in the case) which have holders for points. The C rod also has a round holder, but it does not slide. Two short brass rods (one a tracer point) fit in grooves in the lid. The pantograph moves over the paper on six ivory-colored wheels. No weight. No pencil point. A mark on one arm reads: G. Davis / Optician / LEEDS.
Compare MA.317868, MA.327891, MA.334888, and 2005.0182.8.
The inscription is that of Gabriel Davis, an optician in Leeds who was active from 1822 to 1847. While this pantograph was sold by Davis, it was probably made by Cary.
Reference:
Gloria Clifton, Directory of British Scientific Instrument Makers 1550-1851, p. 78.
This patent model demonstrates an invention for a pantograph which was granted patent number 222798. The patent details the arrangement of scales and adjustment devices on a pantograph, particularly intended for use by tailors and dressmakers. The patent was granted to John Jurgen Friederich Schnoor of Davenport, Iowa on December 27, 1879.
This instrument consists of four hollow brass bars with square cross section. Two bars (labeled B and C) are about twenty-four inches long, the other two (the front one labeled D) are about twelve inches long. The two long bars are joined on their left ends. The two shorter bars are joined at their right ends. One short bar also is screwed to each of the longer bars. The bars move on five casters attached to them.
The long bar (B) and the short bar (D) toward the front of the instrument both have scales that run from 1/2 to ¾ and then from 2/5 to 1/10. These two bars also each have a sliding head upon them. The front one attaches to a heavy black triangular weight stored in the case. Bars C and D hold the tracer and pencil point (or conversely). A mark on one of the bars reads: STANLEY, LONDON.
Not all of the pieces of this pantograph have survived.
The instrument fits into a wooden case.
For a detailed discussion, see Stanley.
The owner of this instrument wa probably the civil engineer Llewellyn Nathaniel Edwards (1873-1952).
Reference:
W. F. Stanley, Mathematical and Drawing Instruments, 6th ed. (London, 1888), pp. 120-131.
A pantograph is an instrument used to duplicate drawings, at different scales if need be. This example consists of four wooden arms held together with pins and a screw-eye with a wooden anchor support under one arm. Two metal screw-eyes are placed in holes which are numbered from 1 to 10. There is a tracer point in one arm, but there no longer is a pencil point.
A mark stamped on one of the wooden bars reads: 1495 (/) POSTS. Below this is stamped an image of an eagle clutching a shield that is stamped P. This trademark appeared on the first page of the Frederick Post Company Catalog in 1903. By 1921, another trademark was used.
The pantograph is number 1495 in the catalog of The Frederick Post Company. The company was started by Frederick Post (1862-1936), a native of Hamburg who emigrated to the United States in 1885 and soon settled in Chicago. By the time of the 1900 U.S. Census, he was a manufacturer of artist's materials there. Post imported drawing instruments and slide rules as well as manufacturing them. Whether his firm made this pantograph is not known.
The instrument is from the estate of the American inventor of tabulating machines Herman Hollerith, Jr. In 1889, Hollerith introduced a device for punching cards for tabulating machines that was called a pantograph card punch. This pantograph dates from after that invention.
For information about the pantograph card punch, see MA.312896.
This brass pantograph consists of four arms connected by pins. The long arms are twenty-five and twenty-four inches long, with the distance from the fulcrum to the points being twenty-four inches. Two of the arms are marked from 6 to 1/12 (the subdivisions of these scales are not fine). The pantograph rolls on three metal casters. There are two spools for thread next to levers with black handles at the ends of the long bars away from their meeting point. The pencil point has a cup on top for weights. The wooden case also contains three metal squares painted black, a stone weight with a metal loop in top, and a large round iron weight to anchor the pantograph. The iron weight has a metal bar on top to attach it to the pantograph and two screws on its sides. A wooden bar and two metal screws secure it in the case.
Penciled on the inside of the lid is the name: E. M. Douglas. Also written in black on the inside of the lid is the mark: Ser. 100. Two paper tags atop the lid are badly worn and illegible. A piece of masking tape reads: 100.
Compare MA.335263, which was pantograph model 1127 sold by Keuffel & Esser. This object resembles Keuffel and Esser’s Model 1126. Keuffel & Esser offered pantographs with bars twenty-four inches, twenty-eight inches and thirty-three inches long (the models 1126, 1127 and 1128 respectively) from at least 1890. However, the cross-section of the bars was square. By its 1906 catalog, the cross-section of pantographs 1126, 1127, and 1128 was rectangular rather than square – as it is in this example. Hence this appears to be a model 1126 in the later style. Three models also was listed in the 1909 catalog. Catalogs for 1913, 1916, and 1921 list only the model 1127. None of these pantographs were listed in the 1927 or 1936 catalogs. Hence it seems likely that this object dates from the period 1900-1912.
There was an Edward M. Douglas who worked as a topographer at the U.S. Geological Survey from 1882 and was Chief of the Computing Division there from 1911 until transferring to the map information office in the War Department in 1925; he worked in the War Department until his retirement in 1930.
References:
Catalogue of Keuffel & Esser, New York, 1890 (p. 107), 1892 (p. 107), 1906 (p. 168), 1909 (p. 154), 1913 (p. 151), 1916 (p. 151), 1921 (p. 102), 1936.
R. T. Evans and H. M. Frye, History of the Topographic Branch (Division), U.S. Geological Survey, Circular 1341, 2009, p. 154.
This brass pantograph consists of four hollow bars with rectangular cross section. These are thirty-one inches and twenty-nine inches long, with the distance from the fulcrum to the points being twenty-eight inches. The bars slide on three metal wheels. The bar containing the pencil point is marked for ratios up to 1:6. There is also a vernier divided into tenths. The tracer and pencil points are on the outside bars. A cup on the pencil mechanism hold weights, such as coins or shot. An extra tracer point is stored on a screw in the bottom of the case. Strings wound around spools on these mechanisms are set by lowering a pin on the spool into a slot on the adjacent metal bar. Each spool is supported by another metal bar which has a black handle. A lead weight with two metal side plates and screws and a metal under plate fits into a pinion on one of the central brass bars. A metal clamp slides into place to secure the weight. Since the tracer and pencil are not on parallel bars, it seems to be especially important to have the tracer, weight, and pencil lay in the same line when attempting to copy a drawing.
The pantograph is stored in a wooden case with two metal hooks and a lock. The interior of the case holds three wooden bars, each with two brass screws that secure the instrument in transit.
A mark on one bar reads: KEUFFEL & ESSER Co (/) NEW YORK (/) 42555, giving the serial number. A mark on a metal tag on the front of the lid of the case reads: KEUFFEL & ESSER CO. (/) CHICAGO. NEW YORK. ST. LOUIS. (/) SAN FRANCISCO. MONTREAL. (/) NO. 42555.
Keuffel & Esser was offering pantographs with bars twenty-four inches, twenty-eight inches and thirty-three inches long (the models 1126, 1127 and 1128 respectively) from at least 1890. However, the cross-section of the bars was square. By its 1906 catalog, the cross-section of pantographs 1126, 1127, and 1128 was rectangular – as it is in this example. Hence this appears to be a model 1127 in the later style. Three models also was listed in the 1909 catalog. Catalogs for 1913, 1916, and 1921 list only the model 1127. None of these pantographs were listed in the 1927 or 1936 catalogs. Hence it seems likely (especially considering the high serial number) that this pantograph was made between 1910 and 1925.
References:
Catalogue of Keuffel & Esser, New York, 1890 (p. 107), 1892 (p. 107), 1906 (p. 168), 1909 (p. 154), 1913 (p. 151), 1916 (p. 151), 1921 (p. 102), 1936.
This suspended pantograph consists of four hollow steel bars, which form a rectangle with two extended parallel sides. The bars are about twenty-eight inches long. One vertex of the rectangle contains a peg with a rounded tip, which attaches to a heavy iron standard which anchors the pantograph. This standard, painted black, has three paper protective pads underneath it. Two wires stored in the lid of the case connect to the standard at perpendicular corners. These wires hold the arms of the pantograph off the paper, reducing friction in the tracing.
Three of the bars are marked from zero to sixty centimeters by tenths and in ratios from 1:20 to 4:5. Joints with adjustable feet are at the corners. The tracer and pencil points are placed at the far end of one bar and on the crossbar. These points are interchangeable so they can be used in both enlarging and reducing.
When the three arms with divisions are set to the desired ratio, the standard, pencil point, and tracer point lie in the same line. Thus, the pantograph works on the principle of similar right triangles. The tracer is moved over the drawing with an oblong wooden handle. A clip next to the far point holds a string (wrapped around a card in the case) which runs through the corner joint, the other point, and ends at the other corner joint.
The pantograph is stored in a wooden case with a metal handle. Braces inside the case are lined with felt. The case also contains a cleaning rag, two metal disk weights for the pencil, a pencil holder, and two tracer points. The pantograph must be set to the 1:2 ratio to be placed into the case.
A mark inside the lid of the case reads: PANTAGRAPH (/) 8-6-42 (/) From Eng. & Val. Div. Another mark there, inside a box, reads: Prepared in (/) SERVICE DIVISION (/) Income Tax Unit. A printed label filled in with crayon on the bottom of the case reads: TO: NATIONAL PRESS BUILDING (/) Floor 7-[?] (/) Room No. 757 (/) Section Eng (/) Unit No. Draftingroom (/) Employee M E Spear (/) Consolidated Returns, (/) Audit Division. A mark on a metal tag on one bar reads: Eugene Dietzgen Co. A mark engraved on another bar, near the handle for directing the pencil point reads: G. Coradi, Zurich (/) Switzerland (/) No 3777.
Eugene Dietzgen Company of Chicago offered suspended pantographs in its catalogs from at least 1902. This appears to be Dietzgen’s Model No. 1889 which was listed in the Dietzgen Catalogue from 1910 until at least 1949.
The tag on the bottom of the case for the object indicates that it was moved to an office of the Internal Revenue Service at the National Press Building. According to Cosgrove, the IRS moved into that building in 1928 and left in 1930. Hence the object was made by 1928.
The pantograph was sent to M.E. Spear. The 1920 U.S. Census indicates that Mary E. Hunt, then twenty-two years old, was a draftsman living in Washington, D.C., and working for the Internal Revenue Service. By 1924, Hunt had married A. Spear and was living Takoma Park, Md., and still working for the Internal Revenue Service. The 1930 U.S. Census lists a Mary E. Spear, thirty-three years old and living in Takoma Park, Maryland, with her husband Albert A. Spear. From information there, her birthdate appears to be about 1897. By 1935, she is listed in the city directory as a draftsman at the U.S. Department of Labor. In the 1940 U.S. Census, her occupation is given as “analyst.” By 1952, Mary Eleanor Spear, a Visual Information Specialist at the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor, published Charting Statistics (McGraw-Hill, 1952). She would go on to write Practical Charting Techniques (McGraw-Hill, 1969). The Social Security Death Index lists Mary Spear (1897-1986) who was living in Gaithersburg, Md., at the time of her death.
References:
John Cosgrove, ed. Reliable Sources: The National Press Club in the American Century, Paducah, Ky.: Turner Publishing Company, 1997, p. 141.
Eugene Dietzgen Company, Catalogue, Chicago, 1902 (pp. 149-152), 1904 (pp. 180-182), 1910 (pp. 230-232), 1919 (pp. 93-95), 1921 (pp. 212-214), 1926 (pp. 192-194), 1928 (pp. 197-199), 1938 (pp.252-253), 1949 (pp. 252-253). In these catalogues, the model 1889 is listed from 1910-1949.
This instrument has four hardwood bars with mahogany edges. The bars are 41 inches long. The fulcrum, joints with thumbscrews, and interchangeable tracer and pencil points are metal (no lead in the pencil point). Each bar has thirty-four holes drilled in it. These are spaced the same way on each bar, but not at equal intervals. The holes are labeled from 1 to 34 and also from 1 1/8 to 8. The device may be used to enlarge a drawing up to eight times the original size or reduce to as little as one eighth.
A mark on one bar reads: EUGENE DIETZGEN CO. (/) CHICAGO-NEW YORK (/) SAN FRANCISCO-TORONTO-NEW ORLEANS.
Reference:
Eugene Dietzgen Co., Catalog, 1926, p. 192. This model is not shown in the catalog for 1905. In the catalogs for 1912 and 1921 it has catalog number 1875 1/2. It is shown in the 1938 catalog.
This illustrated sheet describes the use of several pantographs sold by the Lutz Company. On of them is the pantograph with catalog number 1991.0694.01.
This wooden pantograph consists of four wooden bars held together with metal screw-eyes and pivots. The bars are marked from 1 to 34 and from 1 1/8 to 8. A metal screw and weight balances one end of the bars when they are assembled, while a pivot shoe and pencil and scriber points are at the other ends. Metal screw-eyes are placed in corresponding holes, and then a person moves the pencil-tip while the scriber point traces the picture to be copied. The pencil point goes in the outer screw for enlarging and in the inner screw for reducing.
There is also a black metal bar in the box for this pantograph, but it is not clear that it belongs to the instrument.
Stamped on the cardboard box and its lid is the name of the former owner: ROBERT M. LEONARD. A mark on one end of the lid reads: $3.50. A pencil mark on one edge of one arm reads: 1842.
The Lutz Company was established in the early 1890s in Guttenberg, New Jersey, by German-born Kilian V. Lutz (1859-1916), and sold a range of drawing instruments and slide rules. The instructions indicate that by the time this pantograph was sold, the address of the firm was 65-71st Street in Guttenberg, and the telephone number was UNion 7-1920. The use of letters in the prefix of the phone number suggests a date of before 1963.
Robert Meyer Leonard (1923-1991), who owned this Lutz pantograph, was a graduate of Idaho State University who received a doctorate in pharmacology from the University of Minnesota. After working in Idaho and Utah, he came to Washington, D.C., in 1951 to teach at George Washington University. There he rose to the position of dean of pharmacy. In about 1964, Leonard moved to the National Institutes of Health, where he worked in the division of research grants, retiring in 1985.
Location
Currently not on view
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