Accession Number

1986.008.0729

Creation Date

circa 1620

Description

An exceptionally small set of dividers has hinged, straight arms that terminate in sharp points. The points would be used to precisely gauge or mark positions on a surface. In a shipboard context, dividers are generally associated with navigation, where they were used measure or plot length and distance on a chart in conjunction with a scale or latitude to help set a course or establish where a ship had been. Dividers could have been used by artisans, too – carpenters or metalsmiths, for example – to measure and mark points and lines on objects. Faint remnants of horizontal grooves are seen on the arms, designed to improve grip. The reason for the small size of these dividers is not known.

Exhibition Label

Case Caption (2023): 

The Pilot

Aboard a Spanish ship, the pilot was third in seniority and would have had over sixteen years’ experience. His training included mathematics and celestial navigation. He also had to be familiar with charts of the overall voyage and those of the fleet’s destination in detail. He needed to understand changes in cloud patterns, shifts in ocean currents, and the quality of the ocean floor along different coastlines.

Aboard the Nuestra Señora de Atocha, the pilot, Martin Jiminez, secured his chest carefully. It was still intact when it was discovered by Mel Fisher’s divers almost 400 years later. It held plotting dividers, a small sundial, a cross staff, a jar, gold and silver coins, and gold chains. Most importantly, it held the astrolabe shown here as well as four others. The astrolabe was used to determine latitude. Certainty about the ship’s latitude combined with the pilot’s other knowledge, meant that the ship would reach its destination safely and on time. 
Object Caption (2023):

Dividers
Bronze (c.1620)
Gifts of Jamestown Inc., James A.Snyder
1986.008.0580, 1986.008.0613, 1986.008.0729, 1986.012.0003

Dividers were used to plot distances on a chart.