General Information

Serial #

63945

Part Number

1

Total Parts

1

AKA

N/A

Patents

N/A

General Description

Brass, makrolon & glass sextant. mahagony wood case has foam padding; cw padded fabric cover & fabric cleaning cloth.

Dimensions

Note: These reflect the general size for storage and are not necessarily representative of the object's true dimensions.

Length

31.0 cm

Width

31.0 cm

Height

18.0 cm

Thickness

N/A

Weight

N/A

Diameter

N/A

Volume

N/A

Lexicon

Group

Marine Transportation

Category

Navigation instruments & equipment

Sub-Category

N/A

Manufacturer

AKA

PLATH

Country

Federal Republic of Germany

State/Province

Unknown

City

Hamburg

Context

Country

Worldwide

State/Province

Unknown

Period

This sextant never used. Sextant developed in 1757, with basic design & shape remaining constant.

Canada

This sextant was never used. Donated by Mr. G.C.E. Theriault of Victoria, B.C.

Function

Micrometer drum sextant used for measuring the angle between the horizon and a celestial body (sun, moon, stars, etc.) A series of reflecting mirrors was used to line up the reflection of the horizon and the body, and then a measurement was read and converted into longitude and latitude.

Technical

Sextant developed in 1757, and facilitated mariners' use of the method of lunars in navigating. Following development of Ramsden's dividing engine (1775), the high costs formerly associated with accurately dividing the sextant's scale were reduced, and the sextant became the standard instrument for measuring vertical and/or horizontal angles at sea. (ref. 1) This sextant was Plath's Navistar Model Sextant. It was designed for ease of use, extremely high durability and above average accuracy. The Navistar sextant was said to represent the finest state of art and technology of a traditional sextant. Arc goes from -5 degrees to 130 degrees.

Area Notes

Unknown

Details

Markings

" C. PLATH/ HAMBURG/ WEST GERMANY " & " NAVISTAR/ 63945 " incised on arc, with scale -5 degrees to 125 degrees, divided at intervals of 1 minute. Micrometer scale 0-59, reads to 0.2 minutes (12 seconds). " Weems & Plath " incised on index arm. Illustrations of instrument in various positions appear on foam packing lining lid.

Missing

None apparent Some holes in foam do not have parts

Finish

Sextant is predominantly black, with bright brass divided arc and selected fittings; glass lenses, filters, micrometer cover, etc./ medium brown mahogany stained wooden box has bright brass hinges & fittings; brown synthetic handle; green foam lining./ bright blue fabric cover lined with green nylon; Velcro closures.

Decoration

N/A