Sextant box found on Nikumaroro: Difference between revisions
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Image:3527_01.jpg| Why no mods in box lid? | Image:3527_01.jpg| Why no mods in box lid? | ||
Image:David_White_box.jpg| 1943 David White box. | Image:David_White_box.jpg| 1943 David White box. | ||
Image:2975engrave.jpg| Naval | Image:2975engrave.jpg| Naval Observatory number on 2975. | ||
Image:Navy-Number_02.jpg|Magnifying glass on 2785. | |||
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Revision as of 23:42, 15 February 2009
The Sextant Box
Analysis in Fiji in 1941
The sextant box found on Nikumaroro and shipped to Fiji in 1941 had two numbers on it: 3500 and 1542 [link needed]. TIGHAR has recently found a plausible explanation for those two numbers. The first is likely to be the maker's number; the second a number inscribed on the instrument when it was calibrated at the U.S. Naval Observatory.
Fred Noonan loaned a naval sextant to a student of his prior to the fatal flight. That sextant box is extant and also has two numbers handwritten on the bottom of it: 3547 and 173. But the sextant inside the box is a Ludolph with a different serial number.
Sextant Box Numbers: Suggestive Patterns
This chart is organized in the order of the Navy number given to the instruments by the Naval Observatory when they were sent there for calibration. Two entries are theoretical; the rest are actual pairs of numbers obtained from various sources. Click on the funny symbol next to the headings to sort on the values in that column.
| Maker | Maker No. | Navy No. | Inspection date | Comments | Bubble? |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W&S (stamped into box and on plate) Warner & Swasey | 69 | 34 | Flying Fish Trading Co. | ? | |
| Brandis (theoretical) | 3547 | 173 | Pensacola | ? | |
| K&E | 18446 | 405 | Smithsonian | yes | |
| K&E (in W&S box) | 4940 | 415 | 1936-1-29 | Flying Fish Trading Co. | no |
| K&E | 5418 | 575 | 1918-4-16 | Mystic Seaport | no |
| Brandis | 3227 | 845 | Mariner's Museum | no | |
| B&B | 11949 | 1144 | eBay | no | |
| Brandis (theoretical) | 3500 | 1542 | Niku | ? | |
| K&E | 37548 | 1555 | 1919-10-24 | Mariner's Museum | no |
| Brandis | 3987 | 1584 | 1938-11-30 | TIGHAR | no |
| Brandis (sextant only) | 3511 | 1585 | TIGHAR (sextant only) | no | |
| Brandis (box only) large box | 3527 | 1599 | 1933-5-4 | TIGHAR (box only) | yes |
| Brandis (box is for 4234) | 4279 | 2531 | 1941-7-23 | Flying Fish Trading Co. | no |
| Brandis | 4946 | 2785 | TIGHAR | no | |
| Brandis | 5620 | 2939 | 19??-?-? | Smithsonian | no |
| Brandis | 5292 | 2975 | 1919-3-26 | Russ Dickey | yes |
| Brandis | 5296 | 2977 | 1919-3-16 | Smithsonian | yes |
| Brandis | 4762 | 4334 | eBay | ? | |
| Brandis | 5760 | 4705 | Smithsonian | no | |
| Brandis (no box) | 3336 | 4773 | eBay (no box) | no | |
| Brandis | 5019 | 4067 | eBay | no | |
| David White (1943) | 11949 | 5508 | eBay | no | |
| David White (1941) | 5273 | USNO Historical Committee Inv | |||
| No Navy numbers or not known | |||||
| Brandis (plate on box containing 4762) | 1844 | ? | eBay | ||
| Brandis (stencil on box) | 4234 | ? | |||
| Brandis | 3193 | none | Smithsonian | yes |
Photo Gallery
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Brandis 4279 in 4234 box.
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Brandis 4279: Navy Sticker.
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Brandis 4279 box: stenciled number 4234.
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Brandis 4946. Standard sextant & box.
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Brandis 5292. Byrd bubble added.
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Brandis 5292. Box modifications.
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Brandis 5292 in modified box.
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Box comparisons.
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Box comparisons.
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K&E 4940/Navy 415 in box for W&S 069/Navy 34.
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W&S maker's number on box.
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Brandis sticker in W&S box with K&E sextant.
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K&E 4940. Naval Observatory inspection 1/29/36.
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Why no mods in box lid?
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1943 David White box.
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Naval Observatory number on 2975.
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Magnifying glass on 2785.
