Drawing instruments by Charles Whitwell
- Made:
- 1593-1610











Case of drawing instruments in leather sling case made by Charles Whitwell between 1593-1610 near St. Clement's Church (without Temple Bar), London. The set contains a pair of 8-inch brass-and-steel dividers with pencil attachment, an 8-inch brass sector, 41/2-inch brass three-legged dividers (probably not original to the set and made at a later date) , a pair of 41/2-inch brass dividers and a brass scribing tool used to mark a surface on which a line is to be drawn. The sector is engraved with the initials 'C.W' for Charles Whitwell.
Drawing instruments were used by draughtsmen to create scale drawings, precisely transfer drawings from one sheet to another and scale up or down. The instruments contained within sets included dividers, pencils, scribing tools for measuring and drawing and sectors for measuring and calculating. Charles Whitwell (active 1592 - 1611) was an engraver and mathematical instrument maker. He was apprenticed to Augustine Ryther in 1582 and became a Freeman of the Grocers' Company in 1590. His workshop was located near St Clement's Church, near what is now Aldwych, in London.
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Details
- Category:
- Mathematics
- Object Number:
- 1914-263
- Materials:
- brass, case, leather and steel
- Measurements:
-
sector - closed: 4 mm x 47 mm x 220 mm, 0.39 kg
case - overall: 50 mm x 50 mm x 230 mm, 0.13 kg
- type:
- drawing instrument sets
- credit:
- Hager, J.
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