Wooden Astrolabe by Shaykh Sakkūt

Technical characteristics

Date

ca. 1800

Type

Astrolabe

Maker

Shaykh Sakkūt

Material

Wood

Provenance

Purchased from the Hotel Drouot, Paris, in 1992

Place recorded

Turkey

Rete star count

23

Maker / attribution

Shaykh Sakkūt

Place of manufacture

Turkey

Design

Visible features

• Throne is shaped like a tree • Limb broken in the upper left quadrant, approximately 45 degrees from the throne • Sighting vanes on the alidade have broken off • Womb covered with paper showing significant worm damage

Provenance and Documentation

The astrolabe was acquired by the History of Science Museum, University of Oxford, in 1992. It was purchased at an auction conducted by Ader Tajan at the Hotel Drouot in Paris on June 2, 1992, listed as lot 126. The acquisition was facilitated by the PRISM Fund and the Scientific Instrument Research Fund. The object is assigned the inventory number 47792, which corresponds to the internal catalogue record provided by the museum. The attribution to Shaykh Sakkūt as the maker is recorded in the museum's catalogue, with a suggested dating of circa 1800. The museum maintains detailed technical reports for the individual components of the instrument, including the rete, plates, and alidade, which serve as the primary documentary evidence for its current condition and structural attributes.

Scales and Astronomical Features

The back of the astrolabe is highly complex, featuring 12 distinct scales used for astronomical calculation. These include standard divisions for altitude and shadow squares (measured in both feet and fingers), alongside more specific indicators for unequal hours, cotangents, and lunar cycles. The lower two quadrants are dedicated to the calendar, the Syrian calendar specifically, and the zodiacal signs. The innermost circle on the back remains an area of investigative uncertainty. Theories suggest it could track the length of the longest day per month or the dates of lunar phases, though neither explanation is fully conclusive. On the front, the rete serves as an indicator-line device holding 23 star pointers. The zodiacal signs are inscribed on the rete, though several are noted as currently illegible.

Construction and Mechanical Assembly

The instrument is constructed primarily from wood, comprising a mater and limb built in two pieces joined with nails. The throne, also made of wood, is integrated into the base and features an engraved, tree-like silhouette. The overall structural integrity is compromised by a break in the upper left quadrant of the limb, located roughly 45 degrees from the throne's position. The edge of the limb is marked with a distinctive red color. The internal womb area is lined with paper, which has suffered significant damage from worm activity over time. The central attachment mechanism for the rete consists of a nut and bolt, which are noted as probable later replacements rather than original components. A metal tab is positioned at the bottom of the instrument, 180 degrees opposite the throne, to secure the plates in place. The sighting alidade is double-ended and rigid, though the loss of its sighting vanes makes it impossible to determine the original configuration of its apertures.

Identification

Reference

47792

Accession number

1992-24

Inventory number

47792

Source note

Facts transcribed from the linked source listing or collection record. Attribution and specifications are source-reported and have not been independently authenticated.

Catalogue references

No catalogue numbers recorded. Numbers are only published once transcribed from a verified edition of a standard catalogue — they are never inferred.