overall: 2.5 cm x 22.5 cm x 10 cm; 1 in x 8 7/8 in x 3 15/16 in
Object Name:
drawing instruments, set of
Place made:
Germany
Date made:
ca 1930-1940
Description:
This folding cardboard case is covered with black leather and lined with green velvet. It is fastened with a brass snap that is marked with a pi symbol and with a backward letter R and the letter G. Inside the lid is marked: TECHNICAL SUPPLY C<u>o</u>. (/) SCRANTON P<u>A</u>. The set includes:
1) 6" German silver drawing compass with removable pencil point, pen point, extension bar, and needle point. On one side, the hinge is marked: SCHOENNER. On the other side, the hinge has the Schoenner logo (overlapping S, G, and two two-headed arrows) and the letters: D. R. P.
2) 3-1/4" German silver pen handle.
3) 6" German silver and steel fixed-leg dividers. On one side, the hinge is marked: SCHOENNER. On the other side, the hinge has the Schoenner logo (overlapping S, G, and two two-headed arrows) and the letters: D. R. P.
4) 1-5/16" cylindrical metal case for leads. Three pencil leads are loose in the tray of the wallet case.
5) 5" steel drawing pen. The handle is painted black.
6) 4" steel bow pen and bow pencil.
7) 1" metal joint tightener.
Technical Supply Company sold drawing materials in Scranton, Pa., by 1903. This set does not resemble any of the sets in the firm's 1912 catalog. Compare to 1989.0305.05. For other sets with Schoenner instruments, see 1977.0279.01, 1977.1101.0097, 1979.0868.01, 1990.0350.01, 1990.0690.01, and MA.317925.04.
Dr. Robert P. Multhauf (1919–2004), who owned this set, graduated from Iowa State College in 1941, served in the U.S. Navy from 1943 to 1947, and earned a Ph.D. from the University of California at Berkeley in 1953. He joined the Smithsonian in 1954 and directed the Museum of History and Technology (later the National Museum of American History) from 1966 to 1969. After serving in other positions, he retired from the Smithsonian in 1987. He likely purchased this set early in his career.
References: "Dr. Robert P. Multhauf," <i>Marin Independent Journal</i>, May 15, 2004; Bernard S. Finn, "Robert P. Multhauf, 1919–2004," <i>Technology and Culture</i> 46, no. 1 (2005): 265–273.