FROM THE DALE BEEKS COLLECTION

This is a wonderful 1794 Christian Hurtin Compass - a true work of art.

This compass checks all of the boxes. Hurtin made this compass in the first year of George Washington's second term as president. The engraving is incredible - the compass is simply stunning to look at. The engraving on the compass face is matched by the lovely patina of compass. And unlike most compasses, this compass is dated on its compass face. Just Wow.

The engraving alone shows that Hurtin was a master craftsman, But the compass has two really neat designed features that I haven’t seen elsewhere yet. First, note the dovetail sight vanes. Dovetail sight vanes were notorious for falling off of early compasses, which is why the makers went to holding down the vanes with thumbscrews and pins. Hurtin solved the dovetail problem in a different way - he used a spring clip to hold the sight vane in-place. Very nifty feature.

Second, the glass lid on most early compasses was held on by friction, and could be difficult to remove. Hurtin’s lid screws off - the lid has a small wing on both sides that slides under the brass enclosures on both arms of the compass. To take the lid off, you rotate the lid counter-clockwide a bit which exposes the wings. The lid then lifts off rather easily. Again, a very nifty feature.

I also really like the "S" on the compass needle. Hurtin also marked the North sight vane and arm with a symbol that I'm told could be a Freemason's symbol.

The initials “GDB” are carved under the compass case. I haven't been able to figure out who GDB might be - perhaps you will have more luck.

Everything appears to be original, except for the glass, which appears to be a modern replacement. Hurtin made roughly 2 surveying instruments per year on average based on the dates and serial numbers of known compasses, and this compass is #17.

This is a wonderful Hurtin Compass from Dale's personal collection, and would make for a fantastic display.

To read more about Christian Hurtin, please go to my Christian Hurtin Maker Webpage.