Voyages in the 17th, 18th, and even 19th centuries were fraught with danger, and these dangers started before hitting the open ocean. When a ship first left port, it could encounter an array of obstacles, such as narrow inlets or channels, shifting currents and sandbars, poor weather, and even other ships.3 The danger only amplified when moving to the open ocean. Early modern ships were sturdy, but they were made of wood, so rough seas would often exude strong torsional stresses on the ship.3 They also lacked on-board power—leaving the ship, which relied on sails, at the mercy of extreme weather.3 Perhaps the most punishing conditions were that of the arctic regions. In William Parry’s account on his journey to the Northwest Passage from 1819-1820, he goes into detail about such bitter arctic conditions. Soon after his arrival, he mentions that “the thermometer fell to -1º; and, on the following day, the sea was observed to be frozen over.”9 Perry’s men had to work diligently to clear the ice from around the ship. What’s more, the men themselves were starting to succumb to the cold. They lit fires between the decks to stave off frostbite and keep warm at night, because the ship had become “very cold below, so that the breath and the vapor accumulated during the night in the bed places upon the beams,” which “immediately froze.”9 Indeed, the elements often took a physical toll on the seamen. Ailments like dysentery, fevers, and scurvy were a common appearance—with scurvy a particular menace being brought on by the poor condition of the sailors and their lack of vitamin C from fresh food.8
But what about the scientific instruments of these journeys? After all, these instruments were vital for navigation, and thus in large part dictated the narratives surrounding these voyages. Knowing your location in the world was extremely important, and thus required that a range of scientific instruments be used and operated by skilled observers in the field, both near and far.1,10 With the instruments of the early modern period mostly being made of wood, metal, glass, and ivory, one may think the materiality of these inanimate objects would remain mostly unchanging and unshifting in the various challenging environments encountered. Moreover, most of the instruments were advertised as being “brought to perfection” during this era, thus embedding an even more stable nature into them.7 It couldn’t be further from the truth, as the turbulent ocean environment would often impair the instruments “usage and maintenance”, leaving them in a constant state of “physical flux”, as described by historian of Science Alexi Baker.7 The movement and vibrations on a ship could shake parts out of alignment, causing them to malfunction or break.7 Shifting environmental conditions, such as temperature and humidity, could cause materials such as wood or metal to expand or contract—rendering instruments inoperable.7 Environmental conditions could also make it very difficult to operate these instruments, especially quadrants, octants, and sextants, which are used to measure angles between celestial bodies and the horizon.2,7 William Parry, on his trip to the Northwest passage from 1819-1820, documented such experiences. He mentions it was so cold that it “became a rather painful experiment to touch any metallic substance with the naked hand……and we found it necessary to use great caution in handling our sextants and other instruments.”9 He furthers this sentiment regarding the instrument’s materiality and usage, remarking that after the instruments were brought below deck, “the vapor was instantly condensed all around it, so as to give the appearance of smoking.”9 When they did operate them in the cold, they had to use leather to prevent contact between hand and instrument, and even held their breath in order not to fog it up and freeze it.9 Parry also had chronometers, which were suspended from beams of the deck in the after-cabin, in canvas cots lined with green baize. Steel springs had been provided by the makers instead of cot-clews to lessen the effect of the jarring of the ship.9 Still, regardless of the efforts by Parry to maintain the chronometers, many of them malfunctioned, or ceased to work altogether.9 William Parry was certainly not alone in encountering issues with his nautical instruments. This was a familiar story that reverberated throughout the world’s oceans in the early modern era. Since this was a time when countries were scouring the globe with geographic, scientific, and imperial aspirations, great emphasis would end up being put on the instruments used in such endeavors. This exhibition focuses on five such instruments: the marine chronometer, sextant, theodolite, astronomical clock, and nautical almanac. Although there were many instruments used during the early modern period, these would play the most prominent role in the biggest problem of the day: finding longitude. And it would be the marine chronometer—the centerpiece of this exhibition—that would end up taking center stage.