Object Details
- Stanley, William Ford
- Description
- This 5-7/8" steel, brass, and ivory drawing pen has a spring inside the point to draw the tips of the point together when the screw is tightened to make a narrower line. The point is also jointed, so when the screw is removed, one side of the point may be opened to a 90° angle. The handle is marked: STANLEY.
- William Ford Stanley (1829–1909) began making mathematical instruments in London in 1853. In his influential 1866 volume on the construction and use of drawing instruments, he called this form of drawing pen a "lifting-nib" or "jointed" pen. It was supposed to be easier to clean than a standard drawing pen. This example was probably made in the late 19th century.
- References: William Ford Stanley, Mathematical Drawing and Measuring Instruments 6th ed. (London: E. & F. N. Spon, 1888), 12; T. Potter, "Aids and Accessories," Journal of the Society of Estate Clerks of Works 8, no. 3 (1895): 33–36; David M. Riches, "W. F. Stanley," Mathematical Instruments: A Private Collection, http://www.mathsinstruments.me.uk/page43.html.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- Credit Line
- Gift of Ruth A. Ming
- late 19th century
- ID Number
- 1978.2110.10
- accession number
- 1978.2110
- catalog number
- 336736
- Object Name
- pen
- Physical Description
- ivory (overall material)
- steel (overall material)
- brass (overall material)
- Measurements
- overall: .5 cm x 14.7 cm x .5 cm; 3/16 in x 5 25/32 in x 3/16 in
- place made
- United Kingdom: England, London
- See more items in
- Medicine and Science: Mathematics
- Pens and Pencils
- Science & Mathematics
- National Museum of American History
- Subject
- Mathematics
- Drawing Instruments
- Drafting, Engineering
- Record ID
- nmah_904293
- GUID (Link to Original Record)
- https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ng49ca746a7-5cd0-704b-e053-15f76fa0b4fa
