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Octant
Catalogue number:
PH*309885
Inscriptions:
"S. P. SYBENGA, NORTH. SHIELDS"
Dimensions:
radius 9.75 inches
Discussion:
This octant has an ebony frame, reinforced brass index arm, and ivory name
plate. The ivory scale is graduated every 20 minutes from -4o to +100o
and read by vernier and tangent screw to single minutes of arc. The
signature is that of Simon Peter Sybenga, an immigrant from Hamburg who worked
as a ship chandler in North Shields, England, from 1853 to 1871. The U.S. Navy
transferred this instrument to the Smithsonian in 1930.
Further Information:
Octant
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