A rare small size mahogany traveling box of dovetail construction, the
compartmentalized interior with a Watt's patent copying
machine circa 1790. The box retains many of the accessories
including the crank handle and a special tool for adjusting the
tension of the rollers. The roller mechanism of machined brass
and steel is particularly interesting in that the pressure and
alignment of the rollers can be adjusted and are connected to each
other by cog-wheels.
Watts was granted a patent in 1780. The patent covered not only the
roller press but also the ink which had to be semi soluble in
water.
The original idea for the patent came from a discussion at the Lunar
Society in Birmingham in1779. Up to that time a copy had to be made by a
scribe.
Erasmus Darwin, a poet, a physiologist, grandfather of Charles and
a fellow member of the Lunar society, described what he called the
"Bigrapher, a duplex pen, a pen with two or more quills, by
the help of which one may write two copies of anything; which will thus,
in a single operation produce both the original and a transcript".
Darwin's "bigrapher" seems to describe Mark Isambard Brunel's
patent "Polygraph" patented in 1799. See: Hygra: AntiqueHygra: Antique Brunell Patent "Polygraph" Circa 1803
Origin: UK ; Circa:
1790; Materials:
mahogany, brass, steel.
Size: 39.3 cm wide by 31 cm by 20.3 cm: 15.5 inches wide
by 12.2 inches by 8 inches.
Condition: good
overall; working locks and keys; see images and detailed descriptions.
Keywords: Hygra.com, Antique
box, James Watt, copying box, copying machine, Lunar Society,
Mathew Bolton, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson,
www.hygra.com
Antique
Boxes and tea caddies.