A rare Francis Barker brass 'Skeleton Dial' Night Marching compass dating from c.1880. This Barker design originated in the early Victorian period, and was used by army officers in campaigns and colonial wars, including the Boer War. But by the late 19th century this type of compass was being replaced by more modern designs, like the early Verner's service pattern compasses.
Although this compass has no maker's or retailer's marks, it was undoubtedly made by Barker and supplied, like most of their products, unsigned to the retail trade. Negretti & Zambra listed the 'Skeleton' in their catalogues until c.1908, describing it as a 'Bronzed metal case compass . . . The dial is very original in construction, being made of sheet aluminium. The whole of the interior of the compass box being coated with luminous paint, the "skeleton" dial stands out in bold relief, thus greatly facilitating the taking of prompt and easy readings'.
This compass features an intricate 'Skeleton’ type, cut-out aluminium dial and a brass case with an all-white interior to aid visibility at night. Early versions had a simple white painted interior, while later versions were painted with a luminous compound - most probably ‘Balmain’s Luminous Paint’, which was patented by William Balmain in 1877. This type of luminous paint was activated by exposure to very bright light, often created by burning a strip of magnesium ribbon. The complex and delicate Skeleton design was one of Francis Barker's earliest, first produced in the 1850’s, and it can certainly be attributed to Francis Barker & Son as this design was only ever made by them.
The compass has a Skeleton dial with a jewelled pivot, rotating bezel with bearing marker on the underside of the glass, and a brass hunter case with viewing window and sighting line in the lid. This sighting line was used in conjunction with the pinhole sight in the thumb ring. In later versions of the Skeleton, the pinhole sight was replaced with a notch on the outside of the ring, as the pinhole tab made the ring difficult to use. The compass would originally have had a transit lock operated by a sliding button on the side of the case, and a lever to lift and lock the compass card, but the lever is missing and the transit lock function is not working. The case would also have had a bronzed finish, and this can still be seen on the interior of the lid.
Further details of the Barker Skeleton compass can be found in Paul Crespel's book, Trade Mark London, available to view as a PDF at the trademarklondon.com website.
Condition:
In very good condition and finds north very well. The skeleton compass card is in very good condition. The glass is in very good condition. The brass case is in very good condition, with a few marks and general signs of age and wear. There is a ding to the edge of the lid near the ring, but the lid still opens and closes well.
Dimensions: 54mm diameter (75mm inc. ring)
