A very rare variant of the F. Barker & Son ‘RGS’ type prismatic compass, dating from c.1904. The lid of the compass is signed 'Made by F. Barker & Son, London' For Davidson & Regenstreif, Cairo'. It is very unusual indeed to find a compass that is marked with both the Barker name and the the retailer's details. This is a particularly rare prismatic design, with elements of both the Schmalcalder Patent design of the early 19th century, and the Singer’s Patent compasses of the 1860’s. It was made by Barker specifically for Davidson & Regenstreif of Cairo, and may well have been intended for military use by a British officer stationed in Egypt.
The compass features a card with Barker's distinctive 'RGS' design - a development of the Singer’s Patent design, and similar to one illustrated in the Royal Geographical Society’s explorers manual Hints to Travellers (1871). The ‘RGS’ type was often used by travellers and explorers around the turn of the century. Ernest Shackleton took several similar compasses with him on his expeditions to the antarctic, including the celebrated 1907-9 British Antarctic Expedition.
Compasses of this type are known to have been manufactured by Francis Barker from around 1875 onwards. The card is hand-drawn, with a very unusual greencard-type ring around the outer edge. The central section of the compass card would have been treated with a luminous compound (most probably ‘Balmain’s Luminous Paint’), which was activated by exposure to very bright light, often created by burning a strip of magnesium ribbon. The position of the original instructions label for rendering the compass luminous in this way can still be seen inside the lid. There is also a small pouch on the front of the leather compass case for the magnesium ribbon (a small piece of magnesium ribbon was still in place inside).
The compass has a 'bronzed' brass case, folding prismatic sight, a transit lock operated by a sliding button on the side of the case, and a manual brake. It comes complete with its original fitted leather case.
Davidson & Regenstreif, Cairo: set up as opticians in the Continental Hotel Buildings, Cairo in 1903, quickly establishing their reputation and becoming official opticians to the Government Opthalmic Hospitals. Mr Regenstreif was originally from Ukraine, arriving in Egypt at the start of the 20th century. The company patented the 'Effdee' Sun and Sand Glasses, which were specially designed for desert conditions and were a great success. The British Foreign Office official Ronald Storrs, a friend of Howard Carter, Lord Kitchener and T. E. Lawrence, who arrived in Egypt in 1904 and went on to become Military Governor of Jerusalem in 1917, was so impressed that he wrote the following short poem about his 'incomparably helpful' 'Effdee' sunglasses:
The men to whom I owe my life
are Davidson and Regenstreif
Or, if I may not praise a Hun
I owe my life to Davidson
An advertsiment in The Sphinx in February 1907 stated that the company were 'Opticians by Appointment to the Army of Occupation, Hospital, etc, contractors to the British and Egyptian Governments, Patentees of the "Effdee" Sun and Sand Glasses (Special Patterns for the Desert)'. By 1909 they were advertsing as 'The Leading Opticians of Cairo', and sales agents for Zeiss, Ross Ltd, and 'F. Barker & Son Ltd, makers of compasses and scientific instruments'.
Condition:
In very good condition, and full working order. The compass finds north very well. There are some minor marks to the compass card and some slight wear to the original bronzed finish of the brass case. The leather case is in very good condition, with a few marks.
Dimensions: 54mm diameter (85mm inc. prism & loop)
