Accession No
6050
Brief Description
compass for the blind, in mahogany case, by L. Casella, English, c. 1871
Origin
England; London
Maker
L. Casella
Class
surveying; magnetism
Earliest Date
1871
Latest Date
1871
Inscription Date
Material
wood (mahogany); metal (brass); cloth; paper
Dimensions
78mm square; height 32mm
Special Collection
Provenance
Purchased from Tesseract, Box 51, Hastings-on-Hudson, New York, 10706, USA, on or before 26/04/2005.
Inscription
'CASELLA'
'LONDON'
'INSTMT. MAKER TO THE ADMRY' (Inscribed around centre of rose)
Description Notes
Compass for the blind in mahogany case; by L. Casella c.1871
Mahogany case with brass hinges and blue cloth fitting on inside of lid. Lid does not close properly.
Upper brass ring, painted black, is held in place with two brass screws. Raised brass letters 'N,E,S,W' and raised brass bars at 45° positions. Brass button to lift needle. Needle is painted blue with weights at either end, and a vertical pin at the North end. 32 point paper rose with 16 points slightly raised, directional abbreviations, fleur-de-lys for North. Degree scale around circumference, numbered 0-180-0, divided to 1°. Inside the rose is the makers inscription 'CASELLA * LONDON * INSTMT MAKER TO THE ADMRY'
Condition: good; complete
References
Events
Description
This simple compass with raised letters was designed for the benefit of blind travellers. Pushing the brass button will raise the needle, the North end can be distinguished from the South end by a vertical pin. Using the raised letters a blind person can tell their direction with surprising accuracy. The compass appears in the maker's 1871 catalogue "Casella's Compasss for the blind, this compass is of string make, in neat mahogany case, 2-1/2 inch. square by 1/2 inch. thick, with raised letters and stop, sp arranged that blind persons (by feeling with their fingers) can with confidence and ease tell their exact local position or bearing, independent of any other object, within 2 or 3 degrees".
08/08/2005
Created by: James Hyslop on 08/08/2005
FM:46519
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