Skip to main content
Want more images or videos?
Request additional images or videos from the seller
1 of 17

British aviation brass glass and Bakelite compass signed SMITHS of 1940

$1,976.94
£1,471.43
€1,650
CA$2,707.91
A$3,011.79
CHF 1,572.66
MX$36,650.24
NOK 20,085.28
SEK 18,836.45
DKK 12,560.87
Shipping
Retrieving quote...
The 1stDibs Promise:
Authenticity Guarantee,
Money-Back Guarantee,
24-Hour Cancellation

About the Item

British brass, glass, and Bakelite aviation compass, signed SMITHS Made in Great Britain Type KCA-1401K from the 1940s, and mounted on wooden board. Compass diameter cm 11.5-in 4.5. Base width 17 cm-in 6.7, total height 11 cm-in 4.3. Good condition, fully functional. The compass consists of a cylindrical-shaped brass vessel, called a mortar, mounted on a universal joint and complete with an adjustable goniometric circle for calculating horizontal angles. The last one is the gift box. The first airplane proper saw the light of day in 1903, when the Wright brothers succeeded in flying - and keeping in the air for 12 seconds-a kind of glider equipped with a 16-horsepower engine at Kill Devil Hill in North Carolina, USA. But the father of aviation is considered by one part of the scientific and aeronautical community to be Alberto Santos-Dumont, who, during a flight held on November 12, 1906, managed to get a heavier-than-air aircraft to take off independently (the Wright brothers had instead used a kind of catapult to take off). The first Italian plane was built by Aristide Faccioli in 1908. The company was founded in 1826 in London by Samuel Smith as a manufacturer and retailer of watches and chronometers, beginning by producing a wide range of watches precision and high quality, at that time the most important customer was the British Admiralty. In 1907 he began production of tachometers and engine accessories that included, carburetors, position lights, dynamos, starters, etc. The outbreak of World War I in 1914 helped expand the market for products offered and in 1915 came the first contracts for airplane accessories. It was necessary to create a separate department for aircraft, which was named Smiths Aircarft Instrument that produced various instruments for the aviation and naval markets. The company is still active and employs 15,000 people. Producing electronic components for the aerospace, medical and industrial markets.
  • Dimensions:
    Height: 4.3 in (10.93 cm)Diameter: 4.5 in (11.43 cm)
  • Materials and Techniques:
  • Period:
  • Date of Manufacture:
    1940
  • Condition:
    Wear consistent with age and use.
  • Seller Location:
    Milan, IT
  • Reference Number:
    1stDibs: LU1020243509332

More From This Seller

View All
Brass and aluminum aviation compass complete with azimuth circle 1940 U.S.A
Located in Milan, IT
Brass and aluminum aeronautical compass complete with azimuth circle, supplied to U.s: Army Air Force aircraft during the world War II. Good condition and functioning. Compass diame...
Category

Vintage 1940s Aviation Objects

Materials

Aluminum

Official British aviation pocket compass signed E. KOEHN Geneva, 1915
Located in Milan, IT
British aviation officer's pocket compass signed E. KOEHN Geneva Switzerland V 1915 brass in the shape of an onion clock. The compass has a snap-lock cover with release button insid...
Category

Vintage 1910s Aviation Objects

Materials

Brass

Official U.S. Air Force compass of 1915 signed Ceebynite Short & Mason N.Y.
Located in Milan, IT
Pocket compass in use by 1915 U.S. Air Force officers made of brass in the shape of an onion clock, signed Ceebynite Short & Mason Taylor Rochester N.Y. The compass is equipped with ...
Category

Vintage 1910s Aviation Objects

Materials

Brass

Bussola a liquido su giunto cardanico e montata su tavola di legno di mogano
Located in Milan, IT
Bussola a liquido su giunto cardanico e montata su tavola di legno di mogano sagomata. Manifattura inglese della fine del XIX sec. La bussola è costituita da un recipiente di forma c...
Category

Antique Late 19th Century Nautical Objects

Materials

Brass

Large brass nautical compass signed OBSERVATOR Rotterdam of the 1930s
Located in Milan, IT
Large brass liquid compass signed OBSERVATOR Rotterdam from the 1930s. Eight-twenty rose complete with goniometric circle. Compass diameter cm 21.5 - 8.5 in, height cm 10.5 - 4.1 in...
Category

Vintage 1930s Nautical Objects

Materials

Brass

Nautical magnetic compass made USA 1930s original wooden box
Located in Milan, IT
Nautical magnetic compass, made in the USA in the 1930s. Bon état. Housed in its original box with wooden slot lid and mounted on gimbal. Box measures 12x12x8.5 cm - inches 4.8x4.8x...
Category

Vintage 1930s Nautical Objects

Materials

Brass

You May Also Like

A Royal Air Force P11 Aircraft Compass No. 11242 D
Located in Godshill, Isle of Wight
A Royal Air Force P11 Aircraft Compass No. 11242 D The compass has a brass body finished in black, it comes in its battleship grey painted wooden...
Category

Vintage 1930s Art Deco Aviation Objects

Materials

Brass

English Swan, Hunter & Wigham Richardson Ships Telegraph No. 1858, 1940
Located in Delft, NL
English Swan, Hunter & Wigham Richardson Ships Telegraph No. 1858, 1940 English Swan, Hunter & Wigham Richardson Ships Telegraph with twin faced head and English commends on a brass...
Category

20th Century English Nautical Objects

Materials

Brass

Old Compass reproduction 1944 London, brown Color
Located in Auribeau sur Siagne, FR
Old Compass reproduction 1944 London, brown Color
Category

20th Century English Scientific Instruments

Materials

Metal

Vintage Ships Spotlight on Pedestal
Located in Norwell, MA
Industrial lighting piece of vintage lighting. Ships spotlight which is mounted by an iron yoke onto a brass pedestal. Rewired with an electric socket. ...
Category

Vintage 1940s Nautical Objects

Materials

Aluminum, Brass

Decorative Alidade, Metal, 20th Century
Located in Madrid, ES
It has a cover to protect the lens made of the same gold metal in which the rest of the instrument is made. The lines, pure and clean, are the protagonists, and make it a great opti...
Category

20th Century Unknown Other Scientific Instruments

Materials

Metal, Other

Siemen Brothers Ships Telegraph
Located in Norwell, MA
Solid brass "Hammerhead" ships telegraph. With faceplate from Siemens Brothers and Company Limited, London. With ahead and astern ships commands includ...
Category

Vintage 1950s North American Nautical Objects

Materials

Brass