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Astronomical Quadrant

National Museum of American History

Object Details

Ellicott, Andrew
Description
This portable astronomical quadrant, which resembles English instruments of the late eighteenth century, has a 12-inch radius, stands 17 inches high, and could be used for measuring star altitudes. It belonged to Andrew Ellicott (1754-1820), a surveyor/geodesist who ran the boundaries of several American states, and who probably made it for his own use. The lenses are original. Andrew Ellicott Douglass added the tangent screw in 1885.
Location
Currently not on view
associated dates
1931 10 28 / 1931 10 28
1899 01 26 / 1899 01 26
1796 00 00 / 1796 00 00, 1890 00 00 / 1890 00 00
ID Number
PH.152081
accession number
116914
catalog number
152081
Object Name
Astronomical Quadrant
Physical Description
metal, brass (overall material)
glass (overall material)
original lenses. (container material)
Measurements
average spatial: 45.1 cm x 30.5 cm x 24.8 cm; 17 3/4 in x 12 in x 9 3/4 in
overall: 17 5/8 in x 13 1/4 in x 13 3/8 in; 44.7675 cm x 33.655 cm x 33.9725 cm
associated place
United States: Arizona, Tucson
United States: Arizona, Flagstaff
See more items in
Medicine and Science: Physical Sciences
National Museum of American History
Record ID
nmah_1132007
Metadata Usage (text)
CC0
GUID (Link to Original Record)
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ng49ca746a9-bcb2-704b-e053-15f76fa0b4fa
There are restrictions for re-using this image. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page .
International media Interoperability Framework
IIIF provides researchers rich metadata and media viewing options for comparison of works across cultural heritage collections. Visit the IIIF page to learn more.
View manifest View in Mirador Viewer

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