- catalogue number: 3.2019416;
- name of artifact: ball spherometer, 6-cm diameter X 6.2-cm height, three legs;
- date of production: ca. 1900-1950;
- materials of manufacture: brass, with some nickel plating(?), and black enamel(?) paint;
- maker: manufacturer “NO”, England or continental Europe?
- provenance: i) purchased on eBay by the museum Director, from a vendor in England;
- condition: restored by museum director;
- notes: the vendor postulated in his description: “I presume they [there were two for sale] are by Griffin and George as they are ex school” (from the eBay page for the item). The logo on the spherometer is unlike those found on Griffin & George instruments.
- comparanda: Cambridge MA, The Collection of Historical Scientific Instruments, Harvard University, DW0229, made by Robert Aglaé Cauchoix (1776-1845), Paris; Washington DC, Smithsonian Institution, 2001.0162.04, made by Cenco (Central Scientific Company), Chicago, ca. 1906-1950, student model; Springfield VT, The Hartness-Porter Museum of Amateur Telescope Making, Spherometer owned by R. W. Porter.
- literature:
- Deborah Jean Warner, "Spherometer", in Instruments of Science: An Historical Encyclopedia, ed. Robert Bud & Deborah Jean Warner (New York–London: Taylor & Francis, 1998), pp. 569-570;
- Allan Mills, "The Spherometer", eRittenhouse 24 (2012/2013), 1-6.
Type:
Other
Description:
Ball Spherometer
Exhibit Number:
0003.2019416
Exhibit Name:
Ball Spherometer
Production Circa:
ca.
Production Year:
1925
Exhibit Thumbnail:
Public Files:
| Attachment | Size |
|---|---|
 spherometer | 2.48 MB |
| spherometer divided circle | 1.1 MB |
| spherometer divided circle (1400x1400) | 748.3 KB |
| spherometer (1000x1140) | 1.18 MB |
| box | 1.52 MB |
