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On Jan 2, 2023, at 13:15, Frank Reed <NoReply_FrankReed@fer3.com> wrote:

Hello Henry.

Are you the owner of this instrument -- the friend that Richard Thompson mentioned earlier?

In your post, you mention again a "twin pillar...sextant". What do you mean by this? It's not a normal description of any sextant that I'm familiar with (but that doesn't mean that no one ever used that expression, of course). A "pillar sextant" is one consisting of two thin metal plates held together by short metal pins between the plates. The pins were once known as "pillars" (probably an architectural analogy since these created great strength in the frame) and so the sextants were known as "pillar sextants". In the modern world, this sounds odd and causes confusion so most museum curators (for example) now list these instruments as "double frame sextants". Either works. But "twin pillar"? I don't see it.

You wrote:
"and from the grandson of Scott himself - Falcon Scott, who confirmed,  'it is unthinkable that my grandfather went on the expedition to the South Pole without taking his own sextant'."

Falcon Scott, grandson of Scott of the Antarctic, was born in 1954. Can anyone confirm that? His opinion on the unthinkability of anything is just that -- his opinion. It's useful as an opinion, but it doesn't constitute evidence for the simple reason that he wasn't born for another four decades after his grandfather died. Descendants of famous people are regularly quoted as authorities in popular accounts of historical events. But their opinions are rarely useful for historical proof. That said, if they had the space on the expedition, and if weight was not an issue (seriously?!), then Capt. Scott may well have brought along his favorite antique pillar sextant. Or maybe not... The engraved name could have been added decades later easily. The sextant seems to be a good match for the photo, but it wasn't a unique design. They made many like it. Provenance of historical artifacts can be a devilishly tricky problem.

Frank Reed
Clockwork Mapping / ReedNavigation.com
Conanicut Island USA