Lot Essay
A careful examination of this astrolobe reveals some interesting insights on its construction, construction lines for drawing the azimuths can be seen on the lower part of each plate. The craftsman who cut the projection scratched the latitude for that projection, and instead of putting this number discretely on the edge, he has placed it boldly on the lower face. These scratched numbers are only partly obscured by the engraver of the letters who wrote Trop[sign of Cancer]over the scratch. On the instrument where letters and numbers are required, layoout lines, two in parallel, have been marked to guide the engraver. And in many places it is possible to see that the letters and numbers have been scratchad in the positions for the engraver to 'trace' over. It would seem that there was a craftsman to produce the mathematical lines, another, perhaps the master or supervisor, who scratched the guide lines and marked the positions of letters and numbers by scratching, and an engraver who cut as directed, mostly directly over the scratch marks. This does suggest making in batches with specialist craftsmen. Throughout, the zeros, 6, 9, and 8 are stamped with a circle; all the rest are engraved with a burin.
The rete resembles the style favoured by the Arsenius workshop of Louvain during the third quarter of the sixteenth century, a somewhat similar, small (diam7in.;178mm) astrolabe, with an Arsenius -inspired rete, is illustrated in A.J.Turner, The Time Museum. Vol 1Time Measuring Instruments. Part 1; Astrolabes, Astrolabe Related Instruments (Rockford Illinois, 1985)pp.140-145. This is dated 1573, and is signed by Adrien Descrolieres (fl.1571-1580), who seems to have been working in Antwerp, Mantua, Paris, and Venice. It was, sold by Christie's South Kensington, on 14 April 1988 lot 158. A larger (diam.10.7in;272mm) astrolabe, unsigned, of similar design, is attributed to Antwerp or Louvain, second half of the sixteenth Century, by the Museo d'Arti Applicate, Milan (see the catalogue Strumenti Scientifici-Orologi,Milan 1983, p.21,no.17 figs. 37-9)
The rete resembles the style favoured by the Arsenius workshop of Louvain during the third quarter of the sixteenth century, a somewhat similar, small (diam7in.;178mm) astrolabe, with an Arsenius -inspired rete, is illustrated in A.J.Turner, The Time Museum. Vol 1Time Measuring Instruments. Part 1; Astrolabes, Astrolabe Related Instruments (Rockford Illinois, 1985)pp.140-145. This is dated 1573, and is signed by Adrien Descrolieres (fl.1571-1580), who seems to have been working in Antwerp, Mantua, Paris, and Venice. It was, sold by Christie's South Kensington, on 14 April 1988 lot 158. A larger (diam.10.7in;272mm) astrolabe, unsigned, of similar design, is attributed to Antwerp or Louvain, second half of the sixteenth Century, by the Museo d'Arti Applicate, Milan (see the catalogue Strumenti Scientifici-Orologi,Milan 1983, p.21,no.17 figs. 37-9)