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Nautical Log in Its Wooden Box to Measure Boats Speed Walker Early 1900s

$1,967.27
£1,457.45
€1,650
CA$2,695.06
A$2,990.40
CHF 1,566.44
MX$36,670.32
NOK 19,924.52
SEK 18,807.89
DKK 12,551.19
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About the Item

Log of brass signed Walker’s Excelsior IV Patent Log, For Yacht, Motor Launches and Fishing Craft from the early 1900s. It is an ancient nautical instrument, which measured the distance and speed of a ship. The propeller was thrown overboard and dragged behind the ship itself, rotating it transmitted the number of turns made on itself to the three quadrants of the log. The data was then read every hour to also derive the speed. Placed in its original wooden box with brass hinges and closing hooks, complete with accessories. Very good condition. Box size 38.5x18x15.5 cm. Thomas Walker patented his first Walker log in 1861, patenting the A1 Harpoon Log two years later. His son, Thomas Ferdinand Walker, patented in 1897 the Cherub log, providing a far more accurate reading. Formally completed in 1912, Thomas Walker & Son LLC installed their headquarters in Oxford Street in Birmingham, and the business was continued by the grandson of Thomas Walker, Thomas Sydney Walker. In the past centuries the attempt to measure the speed of the ships was especially hindered by the lack of tools for the measurement of time of sufficient precision: throwing a piece of wood into the sea from the bow of a ship and measuring the time it took to get at the stern, it was possible to obtain some information on the speed of the ship, but with many errors and inaccuracies. The principle of mechanical patent log was shown to the Royal Society in 1699 by Robert Hooke, but the first model produced for commercial use was patented just in 1802 by Edward Massey, uncle of Thomas Walker, that succeeded him in business.
  • Dimensions:
    Height: 6.11 in (15.5 cm)Width: 15.16 in (38.5 cm)Depth: 7.09 in (18 cm)
  • Materials and Techniques:
  • Place of Origin:
  • Period:
  • Date of Manufacture:
    Early 1900s
  • Condition:
  • Seller Location:
    Milan, IT
  • Reference Number:
    1stDibs: LU1020225621952

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