A Francis Barker prismatic compass, dating from c.1980. This compass was listed as product No. 1404 in the 1982 edition of the Francis Barker catalogue. It was described as having an 'enamel finish aluminium alloy case, with adjustable prism for focusing'. The compass has a jewelled pivot, screw-down transit lock, manual brake, height adjustable prism and sight, aluminium case, and aluminium compass card. This type of compass was first produced by Barker in the late 19th century. Although there are no maker's marks, this compass is similar to the early Barker versions, with the major differences being that the 19th century ones had a paper compass card rather than the aluminium card found in this model, and a wooden case. Details of Francis Barker compasses can be found in Paul Crespel's excellent book Trade mark London, available as a PDF at trademarklondon.com.
Condition:
In very good condition. full working order, and finds North very well. The transit lock works perfectly, the compass card, prism, sights, glass and the aluminium case are in very good condition.
Dimensions: 100mm diameter
