Ten days prior to photographing this Dollond of London pocket barometer/altimeter, I set it to the current barometric pressure, at the same time adjusting the elevation to 633 feet above sea level, which is correct for my front porch. I’d have set it at 642 feet, but I didn’t want to walk upstairs to the bedroom every time I wanted to see if it was working properly. I checked it daily. It works just fine. It remains in its original leather carrying case, the interior bottom lined with velvet, the lid with silk. The hard case has protected the instrument well for around 145 years. I will try to show you an image of one small and shallow dent on one side. To see it, one must roll it around in good light. In other words, it’s a bit hard to find. Something I like about this one is that the elevation is calibrated in feet rather than centimeters. Thank goodness for that. If it showed anything other than feet, those of us who live in the United States, Liberia, or Myanmar would never know how high we were. The range is 0 to 8000 feet. THE CASE: The silk lining hasn’t held up well, but it’s still there. The velvet is fine. I’ll show you images of a couple relatively minor issues with the case. The latch has snapped off, and the bottom is scuffed. I told you they were minor. The case is gilt brass with just the right amount of wear for those of us who love antiques. My red arrow points to the small depression on the side of the case. The glare and reflections make it look worse than it is, but it was the only way I could get it to show up. Hang on, I’ll think of it. It was on the tip of my tongue. Oh well, I can always run for governor of Texas. Here at AKA341, we proudly put our ” fine print ” in bold because it is so simple, short, and sweet. We call its four points our Prime Directives. Second: We never end auctions early. Third: Rarely do we clean or even dust the things we find and offer for sale. We may push a little dust aside if it obscures something important, but that’s about it. If it is dusty and dirty when we find it, count on receiving it with the dust and dirt intact. There is, however, one exception. Note missing snap latch. I suppose you could have the latch area repaired if it bothers you, but I don’t think it will. It still displays well. Click here to go have a look at my other auctions. The item “Antique POCKET BAROMETER ALTIMETER 1865 DOLLOND London CASE Original, IT WORKS” is in sale since Thursday, June 11, 2015. This item is in the category “Antiques\Science & Medicine (Pre-1930)\Scientific Instruments\Barometers”. The seller is “aka341″ and is located in Fairfield, Ohio. This item can be shipped worldwide.
- Maker: Dollond
- Original/Reproduction: Original
- Period: Circa 1865
