Wm. Bond & Son Box Chronometer
date: label: date made
content: ca 1870
name: label: maker
content: Wm. Bond & Son
notes: label: Description
content: This instrument is a specialized timekeeper originally designed for finding longitude at sea and later used everywhere as a source of portable precise time. It has an English-made chronometer movement, finished by the firm William Bond & Son of Boston and fitted with the Bond break-circuit device, electrical equipment to permit the telegraphing of time signals. The Smithsonian’s Astrophysical Observatory used the instrument. The chronometer’s wooden box fits into a padded basket for extra protection.
label: Description
content: Mechanism details:
label: Description
content: Escapement: Earnshaw, spring detent, later pattern
label: Description
content: Duration: 56-hour
label: Description
content: Power source: Spring drive with chain and fuse
label: Description
content: Bowl details:
label: Description
content: Brass bowl
label: Description
content: Brass gimbals
label: Description
content: Bezel screwed and milled
label: Description
content: Crystal flat and plain
label: Description
content: Dial details:
label: Description
content: Engraved and silvered brass
label: Description
content: Indicates hours, minutes, seconds, winding level up and down, 24-hour dial
label: Description
content: Inscription: "WM. BOND & SON, / Boston. No. 586" on dial; "WM. BOND & SON'S, BREAKCIRCUIT. / U. S. A." on silvered inside of bezel
label: Description
content: Hands: Gold, spade, with blued seconds and Up & Down hands
label: Description
content: Case details:
label: Description
content: Box: solid wood, three-part, glazed center section
label: Description
content: Brass corners
label: Description
content: Mother of pearl key escutcheon
label: Description
content: Inscriptions: "WM. BOND & SON. / Boston. No 521 / BREAK CIRCUIT" on nameplate
label: Description
content: "BOND / 521" on small oval plate in bottom of box
label: Description
content: Carrying case: Basket, with padding
label: Description
content: References:
label: Description
content: 1. Gould, Rupert T. <i>The Marine Chronometer.</i> London: Holland Press, 1960.
label: Description
content: 2. Whitney, Marvin E. <i>The Ship's Chronometer.</i> Cincinnati: American Watchmakers Institute Press, 1985.
label: Location
content: Currently not on view
place: label: place made
content: United States: Massachusetts, Boston
setName: label: See more items in
content: Work and Industry: Mechanisms
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content: Time and Navigation
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content: Measuring & Mapping
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: ME.314839
label: catalog number
content: 314839
label: accession number
content: 210897
objectType: label: Object Name
content: box chronometer
physicalDescription: label: Physical Description
content: brass (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: glass (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: steel (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: wood (container material)
label: Measurements
content: overall: 11 in x 10 3/4 in x 11 in; 27.94 cm x 27.305 cm x 27.94 cm