An extremely rare Francis Barker M-71, complete with its original fitted leather case. The Francis Barker M-71 Prismatic Military compass was a direct descendant of the legendary Barker Mk III that was introduced in 1932 and used by British armed forces throughout the second world war. The M-71 was only made during 1971, in very limited quantities, before being replaced by the M-72 in 1972. The M-72 was itself quickly replaced by the M-73, which remains in production today, is standard issue with many armed forces, and is regarded as the world's finest liquid prismatic compass,
The M-71 has a brass case and lid, and a mother of pearl dial with a triangular luminous North marker. The most noticeable difference between the M-71 and M-72 is that the M-71 has luminous paint markers, rather than the tritium lights seen on the M-72. There is also a luminous paint well under the index ring near the hinge, rather than the lozenge shaped well with a tritium light that was used on the M-72. The luminous paint used in the M-71 is activated by exposure to sunlight or any other bright light.
Most of the M-71 and M-72 compasses were totally unmarked, with no maker's marks, serial numbers, or NATO stock numbers. Some of the last to be produced, including this one, had the lettering 'PAT APPd. FOR' ('Patent Applied For') stamped on the base. Almost all of the M-71 compasses were exported to Australia and issued to the Australian armed forces. Further details of the M-71 can be found in Paul Crespel's book Trade Mark London, available to view as a PDF at trademarklondon.com.
Francis Barker & Son Ltd: first established in Clerkenwell, London in 1848, as a maker of compasses and scientific instruments, for the next 100 years the company was one of the most prominent British scientific instrument makers. Francis Barker was a master craftsman who produced a very wide range of compass designs over the years, supplying major retailers such as Negretti & Zambra, J. Lizars, C. W. Dixey, Casella, Dollond, and many others. Francis Barker died in 1875, but his company prospered until 1932, when it was taken over and became F. Barker & Son (1932). During WW2 the company was a major supplier to the British government, with their iconic Barker Mk III liquid prismatic service compass being standard issue to the armed forces. After WW2 the company changed hands several times, relocating to Edenbridge in Kent in 1961. The business is still based in Kent, and is now owned by Pyser Optics, who continue to produce the renowned Francis Barker M-73, widely acknowledged to be the world's finest prismatic compass.
Condition:
In very good condition, full working order, and finds North very well. With minor signs of use, and some slight wear to the paint finish. The mother of pearl card is in very good condition. The prism, index glass, and lid window are in very good condition. The luminous paint markers are working very well, making the compass suitable for use in total darkness, as originally intended. The press stud closure of the original leather case is no longer working, and there are some repairs to the flap, but the case is otherwise in good condition.
Dimensions : 85mm x 60mm x 30mm
