NavList:

David Pike,

You wrote: "Has anybody any ideas what the stand might have been used for. Might it have been a surveying 'add-on'..."

I would guess that's exactly what it is. The stand appears to have three adjustable feet; a common arrangement for leveling an instrument. If it were "simply [...] a sextant repairers handy 'hold it' tool", there would presumably be no need to precisely level the instrument in the horizontal plane. But for a surveying instrument, that's extremely important.

I'm still puzzling over what the two hanging drum shaped "weights" might be used for. Perhaps they can be swung into different positions to compenstae for the weight of the instrument? I don't know.

But I agree: it's very intriguing.

Cheers!

Sean C.