Gimbaled pocket compasses are quite rare. Original catalog illustrations place the manufacture date of this model between 1883 and 1911. (An 1883 Norie and Wilson illustration and a 1911 C F Casella & Co catalog illustration.)

The mother of pearl dial is not signed. The dial is in great condition with some wear near the edge. The nickel case has no dents or dings, but it does show some minor plating and a bit of tarnish near the edges.

The compass has a jeweled pivot which was standard on high quality Singer's Patent compasses of the era. The dial is locked firmly in place when the case is pushed down and it releases easily and finds North once the dial is unlocked, by the user pulling upwards on the telescopic inside portion of the case. The thick, original crystal is in excellent condition.

I have two gimbaled pocket compasses from this era in my compass collection, this being one of the two. I have only seen a few of these early, gimbaled pocket compasses offered for sale over the last 12 years.

Antique, gimbaled pocket compasses are covered on page 36, 37, 38 and 39 of my book, Compass Chronicles. (Also listed on Fleaglass.) The compass listed is not the model which is displayed in my book.

Excerpt from Compass Chronicles:

"Gimbaled pocket compasses were useful under strenuous circumstances. Ship’s compasses were generally housed in a gimbaled case to compensate for the Ocean’s constant movement.

Gimbaled pocket compasses were manufactured in limited numbers between the 1880’s and 1920’s. Gimbaled pocket compasses have a telescopic frame, also known as collapsing gimbals. The user pulls the outside edge of the compass insert upward, which provides enough vertical space for the gimbaled mechanism to operate. When the top of the compass insert is pushed back down, the compass dial and the gimbaled mechanism are locked in place. (Open faced and hunter cased gimbaled compasses both function this way.) The dry card dials generally have a Singer’s Patent mother of pearl dial or an aluminum dial with black and white design. The cases were most commonly made of nickel and brass."