FROM THE DALE BEEKS COLLECTION

Offered here is a magnificent Circa 1790s Heilig Vernier Compass. While the makers in New England were making compasses out of wood instead of expensive brass to make compasses, Heilig used an extravagant amount of brass when making compasses, including this one. The massive compass is 15.5 inches long, with a 5.75 inch needle. The compass tips the scales at 7.8lbs including the compass cover. This is the biggest and heaviest early American compass I have come across. The brass used in this compass alone must have cost a small fortune.

This Heilig compass used the very first design of the vernier system developed in America by David and Benjamin Rittenhouse. (Click here for more information about the First Design Vernier system). If you look closely at the first pic below (the blow up of the compass face), you can see the vernier system on the South end of the divided ring. The vernier runs 5.5 degree plus or minus from 0 degrees South. This 11 degree vernier system shows up between the inner 360 degree divided ring and the outermost divided ring. A thumbscrew on the bottom side of the compass rotates the inner ring up to 5.5 degrees plus or minus to offset for magnetic variation. The Heilig rotates with some stubbornness, so it probably needs a bit of oil to free it up more.

Heilig likely apprenticed with the Rittenhouses in the early 1780s. The Rittenhouse's and Heilig's were related thru marriage, and the Heilig compasses are very similar to those made by the Rittenhouse's. You can read more about John Heilig on my Heilig Makers Webpage.

There are a handful of Heilig compasses out there, including one in the New York MET. Dale's appears to be the best one out there. Dale's unmolested Heilig has a wonderful patina and is complete with original staff adapter and box. The only thing missing from this Heilig is the thumbscrew that secured the staff adapter to the jacobs staff.

There are some very old newspaper fragments in the Heilig box. I saved the loose fragments but haven't really studied in them in detail. There are still some fragments buried in the box and I didn't attempt to free them up.

Dale's Heilig is a top-end colonial surveying instrument. You won't be disappointed.