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M165-25 · Mercury
c.1855
Object Overview
This Early Victorian Mahogany Wheel Barometer, dating to around 1855, is signed by Liverpool-based optician and instrument maker Charles Henry Chadburn. The case is constructed from pine veneered with rich mahogany and features an inlaid border of fruitwood. It is surmounted by a scroll pediment topped with a brass finial. The square base houses a spirit level and a small brass dial (originally silvered) engraved with the maker’s name.
The main dial is crafted from silvered brass and calibrated in London inches of mercury from 26 to 31 inches. Along the scale are the usual textual weather indications. At the center of the dial is a decorative, symmetrical engraving resembling a stylized fleur-de-lis or an elaborate foliate motif. The dial is protected by a domed mineral glass, set into a brass bezel and secured with plaster.
The pointer is made of blued steel in a classic Gothic-Victorian style. The secondary hand, made of brass in a matching design (lacking the feathered tail), serves as a trend indicator and is adjusted via an ivory knob located just below the dial.
Additional features include a decorative hygrometer in a brass bezel, a removable spirit thermometer calibrated in Fahrenheit and set in an arched wooden mount, and a “butler’s mirror” housed in a reeded wooden frame beneath.
n/a
sifon
brass, glass, silvered brass, wood
Inside the case is a glass siphon tube filled with mercury, accessible via a hinged wooden door at the back of the barometer. A small glass weight is suspended into the short branch of the siphon tube, with a thread wound around a pulley; on the opposite side, an identical counterweight is suspended.
A finely crafted example of mid-19th-century British barometric design, combining functional precision with ornamental flair.