Canterbury Astrolabe Quadrant
Encyclopedia
The Canterbury Astrolabe Quadrant is a medieval astrolabe
believed to date from 1388, and which was found in an archeological
dig at the House of Agnes in Canterbury
, Kent, England in 2005.
The Canterbury Astrolabe Quadrant is the only one of its kind definitely made in England. Astrolabes are calculation instruments that enable their users to tell the time and determine their geographical latitude using the position of the sun and stars. An extremely rare instrument, the Canterbury Astrolabe Quadrant probably belonged to a travelling scholar who may have lost it in Canterbury while on pilgrimage to that city.
It is also the first astrolabe to have been found during an archaeological dig. Scientific instruments such as this are usually handed down from generation to generation or found among family possessions, but are rarely discovered in the ground.
The British Museum
was originally outbid in an auction in 2007 for the brass astrolabe, but succeeded in having an export ban imposed on the device, one of only eight such instruments to have survived from the Middle Ages
. The British Museum eventually purchased it in 2008 with £175,000 from The British Museum Friends
plus grants of £125,000 from the National Heritage Memorial Fund
and £50,000 from The Art Fund.
Andrew Burnett, Deputy Director of the British Museum, said, "It is wonderful that we have been able to acquire this unique object... The quadrant will be a very important addition to our medieval collection as an object which can explain the sophistication of science in the Middle Ages and the transfer of knowledge between Muslim, Jewish and Christian communities."
Astrolabe
An astrolabe is an elaborate inclinometer, historically used by astronomers, navigators, and astrologers. Its many uses include locating and predicting the positions of the Sun, Moon, planets, and stars, determining local time given local latitude and longitude, surveying, triangulation, and to...
believed to date from 1388, and which was found in an archeological
Archaeology
Archaeology, or archeology , is the study of human society, primarily through the recovery and analysis of the material culture and environmental data that they have left behind, which includes artifacts, architecture, biofacts and cultural landscapes...
dig at the House of Agnes in Canterbury
Canterbury
Canterbury is a historic English cathedral city, which lies at the heart of the City of Canterbury, a district of Kent in South East England. It lies on the River Stour....
, Kent, England in 2005.
The Canterbury Astrolabe Quadrant is the only one of its kind definitely made in England. Astrolabes are calculation instruments that enable their users to tell the time and determine their geographical latitude using the position of the sun and stars. An extremely rare instrument, the Canterbury Astrolabe Quadrant probably belonged to a travelling scholar who may have lost it in Canterbury while on pilgrimage to that city.
It is also the first astrolabe to have been found during an archaeological dig. Scientific instruments such as this are usually handed down from generation to generation or found among family possessions, but are rarely discovered in the ground.
The British Museum
British Museum
The British Museum is a museum of human history and culture in London. Its collections, which number more than seven million objects, are amongst the largest and most comprehensive in the world and originate from all continents, illustrating and documenting the story of human culture from its...
was originally outbid in an auction in 2007 for the brass astrolabe, but succeeded in having an export ban imposed on the device, one of only eight such instruments to have survived from the Middle Ages
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
. The British Museum eventually purchased it in 2008 with £175,000 from The British Museum Friends
The British Museum Friends
The British Museum Friends is a registered charitable organisation in the UK with close links to the British Museum, and was set up in 1968...
plus grants of £125,000 from the National Heritage Memorial Fund
National Heritage Memorial Fund
The National Heritage Memorial Fund is a non-departmental public body set up under the National Heritage Act 1980 in memory of people who gave their lives for the United Kingdom....
and £50,000 from The Art Fund.
Andrew Burnett, Deputy Director of the British Museum, said, "It is wonderful that we have been able to acquire this unique object... The quadrant will be a very important addition to our medieval collection as an object which can explain the sophistication of science in the Middle Ages and the transfer of knowledge between Muslim, Jewish and Christian communities."