A rare Verner’s Patent No.2157 Cavalry Sketching Board, made by Adie of London in 1901. The rear of the board is stamped ‘Adie, London, 1901’. Various similar designs of Cavalry sketching board were being produced around this time, including those by J. H. Steward, and Aston & Mander. The Verner’s board is very well made, of wood and brass, and features a built-in compass, a ruler on an articulated brass arm, and a clinometer on the rear. It is quite unusual to find a Verner's that retains its original ruler, as these were often removed and lost.
The Cavalry Sketching Board: was originally designed by Colonel W. H. Richards, who taught military surveying at the Royal Military Academy, Sandhurst c.1880. The board was improved by Major Willoughby Verner who was also briefly Professor of Topography at Sandhurst. Verner patented his own improvements in 1887 and 1891 and the sketching board became generally known as the ‘Verner's'. W. J. Bosworth patented further improvements in 1897, and versions of the board remained in use until around 1930. They were produced by several scientific instrument makers, including Adie, J. H. Steward, Aston & Mander, Lawrence & Mayo, A. Edgell & Co., and Houghton’s.
Cavalry Sketching Boards were designed to be strapped to the arm of an officer or cavalryman on the bridle arm. The board was attached to the arm by a leather strap with a swivel joint. This enabled the user to twist the whole board on their arm to align the compass accurately. The board incorporated a compass for taking bearings, and the sketch was made on a paper roll which was wound around one of the side rollers. As a sketch was completed, the paper roll was advanced to supply more paper. Sketching boards were widely used during the Boer War and WW1. During WW1 the sketching board was often used by the artillery, cavalry, and pilots and observers of the Royal Flying Corps to make sketches of enemy positions and trenches.
Patrick Adie, London: Patrick Adie (1821-1886) was a member of the well-known family of scientific instrument makers who started out in Edinburgh around 1804, and became Adie & Son in 1835. Alexander Adie (1777-1858) set up the business, having previously been apprenticed to the celebrated instrument maker George Adams. His three sons followed him into the business, with Patrick going on to establish his own Mathematical and Philosophical instrument firm in London in 1844. Patrick Adie specialised in meteorological instruments and exhibited at the Great Exhibition in 1851. He also made civil engineering instruments and supplied the Great Trigonometrical Survey of India. The business traded at various addresses, including 395 The Strand (1848-68), 15 Pall Mall (1869-85), 29 Regent Street (1869-70), and Broadway Works, Westminster (1890-1901). Although Patrick Adie died in 1886, the firm continued trading until 1942.
Condition:
The sketching board, compass, ruler, and clinometer are in very good condition and good working order, with minor signs of wear and a few marks. There are some marks and general signs of wear and use on the woodwork, and some marks to the articulated brass arm. There would originally have been a leather strap attached to the rear of the board, but this is missing.
Dimensions: Board: 175mm x 245mm, Compass: 30mm diameter
