Accession No

0630

Brief Description

folding coin balance, by Jesse Ramsden, 1765 - 1773

Origin

Haymarket; London; England

Maker

Ramsden

Class

balances

Earliest Date

1765

Latest Date

1773

Inscription Date

Material

metal (brass, steel); wood (mahogany); paper

Dimensions

length 142 mm; breadth 24 mm; depth 15 mm

Special Collection

Robert Whipple collection

Provenance

Purchased from T.H. Court on 05/11/1930.

Inscription

‘Ramsden,
Hay Market,
LONDON.’ (label in box)

Description Notes

folding coin balance, by Jesse Ramsden, c. 1770

Unequal arm with weight type. Brass beam graduated 36, 27, 21, 18, 13-6, 10-6, 9, 6-9, 5-3, 4-6 in shillings where 36s is 1/2 johannis, 27 shillings is one moidore and 21s is a guinea. Sliding weight graduated [0] - 24, numbered by 6, subdivided to 1 penny with spring slide. Weight moves across pivot. Open bearing; ‘H’ type hanger with rectangular coin pan; straight steel column with apertures for steel knife edge bearing. Brass link and rest. Folds manually.
Mahogany box with sliding lid; one end missing; screw in end of beam with hole cut for it in box (?later addition). (Cracked and broken base).
(box found broken 15/02/2013)

Condition: poor (box broken, label discoloured, brass tarnished)); incomplete (end of box has become detached and has not been found) 15/02/2013.

[Note on the date: Ramsden left Haymarket in 1773]

References

Events