Flaked Bottle Glass, National Museum of Australia in Canberra
photo: Alessandro Zambelli
c 1570
Drawing Instruments, Signed by Bartholomew Newsum
circa 1570; London
Gilt brass; 198 ? 74 ? 74 mm
This is the earliest known set of drawing instruments in their original case; it was made by Bartholomew Newsum, clockmaker to Elizabeth I.
All the sides of the box are finely engraved with representations of War, Peace, Poverty and Abundance, and all the instruments are elegantly decorated.
British Museum, London
Registration no. MLA 1912, 2-8.1
c.1510
A sketch by Leonardo da Vinci shows a draftsman drawing an armillary sphere with the help of a transparent plane (ca. 1510). This is a rare example showing Leonardo’s interest in linear perspective.
Architectural Representation and the Perspective Hinge, Perez-Gomez A & Pelletier L, 1997
16th Century
Epact: Scientific Insruments of Medieval and Renaissance Europe, http://www.mhs.ox.ac.uk/epact/catalogue.php?ENumber=61066
Museum of the History of Science, Oxford
Dividers
Signed by Benvenuto della Volpaia
16th century; Florence
1500-1564
Compasses, Unsigned, 16th century; Italian
Brass and steel; 300 mm in length
This brass instrument with steel points is contained in a cylindrical metal case and provided with steel accessories such as straight and curved points, pencil-holders, paper cutters and so on. Each required accessory could be inserted into the brass legs and held by a screw. In its various permutations, this instrument could serve as compasses, as dividers, as a caliper and for marking up drawings.
The instrument is known as the ‘Michelangelo’ compasses, because it was found amongst the possessions of Michelangelo Buonarrotti.
Istituto e Museo di Storia della Scienza, Firenze
Inventory no. 1357
http://www.mhs.ox.ac.uk/epact/catalogue.php?ENumber=55801
c.1500-1520
Unsigned, Italian
Set of drawing instruments
Early sixteenth century
Steel damascened with gold and silver
205 x 71 x 43 mm (box)
Provenance: Stowe Collection; Drake Collection; Arnold Collection; Mr P. Webster, prior to purchase by Lewis Evans in 1920; donated to the University of Oxford in 1924
Exhibited at the Special Exhibition of Works of Art, South Kensington, London, June 1862 (catalogue no. 6593)
Oxford, Museum of the History of Science, inv. 52444
Palladio Beltramini G & Burns H, 2008
1494
Summa de arithmetica, geometrica, proportioni et proportionalita, published by Luca Pacioli (1445-1509) in 1494
1225-1250
The Emergence of Modern Architecture, Lefaivre L, 2004
Figures drawn ‘by the art of geometry’ in The Sketchbook of Villard de Honnecourt
1765
Perspective apparatus designed by the engineer James Watt and made by him in Glasgow in 1765. This is an ingenious device, easily transportable, for use in external perspectives. The apparatus folds away into a fitted hardwood case, which also forms the drawing board; its stand fits together to form a walking stick. Science Museum, London.
Drawing Instruments 1580-1980, Hambly M, 1988
1763
Pantograph shown in use, as illustrated in the Dessein section of the Encyclopedie of Diderot & d’Alembert, published in Paris in I763.
Drawing Instruments 1580-1980, Hambly M, 1988
1760
Volute compasses in silver made for George III and signed ‘D. Lyle 1760’. These consist of a beam divided into inches similar to a beam compass, but with a helical drum unit fixed to the plane of the beam. A catgut thread connects the end of the helical curved spring to the pencil-holder. The beam is rotated with the centre fixed, and the drawing point traces a spiral curve. Alternative helical drums are included in the shagreen-covered fitted case for drawing different spiral curves. Beam length 7½in (190 mm). George III Collection, Science Museum, London.
Drawing Instruments 1580-1980, Hambly M, 1988
c.1760
A small magazine case of drawing instruments made by George Adams the Elder. The Sheraton-style case is of oak and mahogany lined with green velvet with the brass instruments fitted to the lid and to the base. This set includes a semi-elliptical trammel and drawing arm, proportional compasses, 6-inch pair of compasses and a 9-inch protractor combined with scales, medium dividers, small bows, and three sizes of ruling pens. There is a 9-inch sector, 6-inch callipers and a 6-inch parallel rule to the lid (not shown). The gunners’ callipers and the protractor are signed and the sector is fully signed ‘Improved & Made by GEORGE ADAMS at Tycho Brahes’ Head in Fleet Street. LONDON’, which dates the case c. I760. Science Museum, London.
Drawing Instruments 1580-1980, Hambly M, 1988
What’s in an Archaeologist’s Bag? (by stinkkatze)
Says the photographer:
“Lucy,” my archaeology field kit.
At the end of every summer, my tools undergo a ritual cleaning to clear off the field season’s dirt and grime. It also gives me a chance to replace broken or lost tools. My papers and notebooks are usually kept in a separate bag to protect them from dirt and water.
(via zomganthro)
1731
Eighteenth-century engraving showing a building under construction and the architect discussing some detail with his client. The accompanying verse is taken from Pope’s Epistle to Lord Burlington. 1731. Mansell Collection.
Drawing Instruments 1580-1980, Hambly M, 1988
1730
Architectonic sector in brass, possibly based on a design described by Revisi Bruti of Vicenza in his treatise of 1627; arranged as a hinged sector with sliding architectonic plates or arcs, the latter finely engraved with scales for calculating all the elements which make up the five Classical orders of architecture. Maker Culpeper? Length 11½in (290 mm); diam 6½in (165 mm). c.1730. Museum of the History of Science. Oxford.
Drawing Instruments 1580-1980, Hambly M, 1988
