I say almost verbatim, because at several points in the narrative phrases have been inserted: ‘having there adjusted his Watches’, ‘having a great confidence in the said Watches’. Moray’s account of Holmes’s remarkable success with the pendulum clocks was published immediately, almost verbatim, in the Royal Society’s Philosophical Transactions and in French in the Journal des sçavans, together with extracts of his letter to Chapelain. The Estates General want to see the clock at their Assembly. But since these have already been so successful, and that the others are even more precise, I feel entitled to believe that the discovery of true longitude will shortly reach its final perfection. I could never have imagined that clocks of this first, preliminary mode of construction could have succeeded so well, and I had reserved my principal hopes for the new ones. On his return, Captain Holmes has lodged his report concerning the usefulness of pendulum clocks, which goes far beyond my expectations. On 5 February Huygens wrote to a close friend, Jean Chapelain, to tell him of his successful application to the States General for a Dutch patent for his longitude clock, based on Holmes’s testimony. Huygens had written repeatedly to Moray for news of the trials, hence that ‘At last’ at the beginning of Moray’s letter. These had been undertaken by Robert Holmes on a voyage to the Guinea Coast of Africa sponsored by the Royal African Company.
#Folio watch pendulum series
For over a year he had been awaiting the outcome of a series of sea-trials of his clocks, to establish whether they might keep time with sufficient precision to allow an horological solution to the calculation of longitude. And because the Captain had total confidence in the clocks, he insisted that they continue in his proposed route, and the following morning the Island of Fuego appeared just as he has judged would happen.Ĭhristiaan Huygens was the man who patented that great breakthrough in accurate timekeeping, the pendulum clock, in 1657. For the Captain calculated using his pendulum clocks that he was hardly more than 30 leagues away from the Island of Fuego, which is one of the islands of Cape Verde, from which the three Pilots estimated that they were still at a considerable distance. In pursuit of which the Captain, having brought them all together with their Journals they were found to be at odds with the calculations of the Captain, one by 80 leagues, the other by 100 and the third by 120.
But when he had sailed four or five hundred leagues in this direction, the Masters of the three ships under his command, fearing that they would run out of water before they reached their pretended destination, proposed that they should steer a course towards Barbados.
In order to pick up the correct wind for his return he was obliged to steer towards the West and to sail for six hundred leagues without changing his course, after which, finding a favourable wind, he steered towards the coast of Africa, heading directly North North-East.
He left the island of Saint Thomas, which is under the Line, accompanied by four vessels. Artworks like these of any era or style can make for thoughtful decor in any space, but a selection from our variety of those made in paint, canvas and encaustic paint can add an especially memorable touch.On 13/23 January 1665 Sir Robert Moray, courtier and confidant to King Charles II, and sometime President of the Royal Society in London, wrote to the talented young mathematician and horologist Christiaan Huygens at The Hague:Īt last Captain Holmes has returned, and the account he has given us of the experiment with the pendulum clocks leaves us in absolutely no doubt as to their success. Finding an appealing folio watch - no matter the origin - is easy, but Alaina Enslen, John James Audubon, William Hogarth, Audrey Anastasi and George Cruikshank each produced popular versions that are worth a look. If you’re looking to add a folio watch to create new energy in an otherwise neutral space in your home, you can find a work on 1stDibs that features elements of beige, gray, brown, black and more. If you’re looking for a folio watch from a specific time period, our collection is diverse and broad-ranging, and you’ll find at least one that dates back to the 18th Century while another version may have been produced as recently as the 21st Century. In our selection of items, you can find abstract examples as well as a modern version. On 1stDibs, you can find the most appropriate folio watch for your needs in our varied inventory.
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