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Lot Essay
Onboard ship the day is divided into six periods each of four hours duration called a "watch". The watch is further sub-divided into eight 30 minute intervals. The passage of each of these intervals is marked by an increasing progression of bells ie "one bell" at the end of the first 30 minutes, "two bells" at the end of the second 30 minutes through to "eight bells" at the end of the eighth and concluding period of the watch. It is the responsibility of the helmsman - called the Quartermaster - to strike the appropriate number of "bells". In earlier times a "30 minute" sand glass was used to record each interval and when the sand had run through from the top of the glass to the bottom, the helmsman would immediately reverse the glass and strike the appropriate number of bells to indicate the ship's time to all onboard. Morris Tobias - a chronometer maker in the Minories, London - was, granted Patent No. 3584 in 1812 for a timekeeper which would replace the "30 minute" glass and indicate to the helmsman the number of "bells" which he had to strike throughout the four "watch". This is such an example.