THE MATTHEW BERGE´S INSTRUMENTS

AT THE PALERMO ASTRONOMICAL OBSERVATORY *

Giorgia Fodera' Serio

Osservatorio Astronomico di Palermo


L. Indorato

Istituto di Matematica, Universita' di Palermo

In this paper we discuss, on the basis of documentary evidence, the attribution to Matthew Berge, successor to J. Ramsden, of a group of twelve surveying instruments recently found at the Palermo Astronomical Observatory.A brief description of the instruments is given in the appendix.

In the course of restoring the antique instruments of the Palermo Astronomical Observatory and compiling a reliable inventory of its present holdings survived from the historical past, a group of twelve surveying instruments has caught our attention; these include one portable transit, two measuring chains 100 feet in length, one measuring chain 50 feet in length, two altitude barometers, one small theodolite, one achromatic telescope, two beam compasses, one compass with sights, one pantograph. Some of them bear the inscription Berge London Late Ramsden , others the inscription BERGE LONDON. The problem of the correct identification of the maker(s) of these instruments has led us to a search for the original documentation, as the literature is contradictory and confused in discussing instruments bearing such inscriptions.

It is well known that at least two instrument makers named Berge were operating in London between the end of 18th and the beginning of 19th century, namely John and Matthew Berge. Instruments bearing the same inscription as above are attributed to one or the other maker[1], many of these attributions being only tentative. Moreover, while some authors[2] state that John Berge inherited Ramsden's business in Piccadilly,others[3] state that it was Matthew Berge.

Our search for original documents has been aided by a paper byR. Giuffrida[4] containing 14 previously unpublished documents. These 14 documents are part of a series of a total of 32 documents stored at the Archivio di Stato di Palermo[5]. From a careful examination of the entire series of original documents and from inventories and other original documents preserved in the Library of the Palermo Observatory, we have been able to obtain supporting evidence that Matthew Berge succeeded Ramsden, and that the instruments at the Palermo Observatory must be considered his work.

These documents contain a rich epistulary between Giuseppe Piazzi[6], Luigi De Medici[7], and the Royal Court. Their subject is a govern-ment-sponsored land survey necessary for the construction of a modern geographical map of Sicily[8], promoted mainly because of the interest of Piazzi and De Medici[9]. A detailed examination of the planning, success and failure of the entire project, although of extreme interest for the scientific and political history of the time, is outside the scope of this paper. We will therefore limit ourselves to a discussion of those documents which are strictly related to the instruments.


Fig. 1 - List of instrument to be sent to Palermo for the trigonometric survey of the island of Sicily. The list is signed M. Berge. (A.S.P., R.S., b. 1480.)

The earliest document is a list of instruments required for the trigonometric survey of Sicily. This list[10], prepared by Piazzi on Feb. 1, 1808, was submitted to Sir Joseph Banks, President of the Royal Society in London, by the Prince of Castelcicala[11]. In a letter[12] (date-less, but certainly written in 1808, as it can be dated within the sequence of correspondences) addressed to the Prince, Banks states that, after having examined Piazzi's list, the instruments were proper for the survey of the island of Sicily and the geometrical operations which the Padre is about to undertake, since the list included instruments sufficient for all intended purposes. He adds that in his opinion, the proper person to execute these instruments is M. Berge, successor of Ramsden, who worked with him during the time he made similar instruments for Gen. Roy's and Col. Mudge's surveys[13] and of course is in possession of the necessary tools as well as in the practice of using them. Bank's recommendations were accepted. A list of instruments, with their prices, dated May 2, 1808, and signed M. Berge is shown in Fig. 1[14]. All the instruments in this list, except for the larger of the two theodolites (whose order was canceled by Piazzi in 1812)[15], arrived in Palermo over the course of twenty years, from 1809 to 1829 as we gather from inventories and expense books of the Palermo Observatory[16].

From the above documents we can assert that the set of instruments we are discussing are the work of M. Berge. It does not seem possible to address the issue whether the inscriptions Berge London Late Ramsden and BERGE LONDON characterize instruments made in different periods of time.


Table I - Surveying instruments by M. Berge at the Palermo Astronomical Observatory. Column 1 lists progressive numbers according to the list in fig1. Date of arrival in Palermo and inscriptions on the instruments are given in columns 3 and 4.

1

Portable Transit Instrument

1829

BERGE LONDON

2

Two steel measuring chains 100' length

1809

BERGE LONDON

"

One steel measuring chain 50' in lenght

1809

BERGE LONDON

6

Two beam compasses

1829

BERGE LONDON

8

Two Barometers with tripod stands

1809

Berge London Late Ramsden

10

One 2¼" Achromatic telescope with tripod stand

1829

Berge London Late Ramsden

11

One Compass with sights

1829

Berge London Late Ramsden

13

One Theodolite

1813

Berge London Late Ramsden

15

One Pantograph

1827

Berge London Late Ramsden


As it can be seen from table I, there is no obvious relationship between inscriptions and date of arrival of the instruments in Palermo. Moreover the relationship between date of arrival and date of execution is not known except for the theodolite, which was finished in the fall of 1812[17] and arrived in Palermo in January 1813. For example, all the instruments which arrived in 1827 and 1829 must have been made before 1820, year in which Berge's business passed to Worthington[18]. We know moreover that a brass length standard, which arrived in Palermo in January 1827 beared the inscription Berge London 1809 Late Ramsden. According to Angelitti its case contained a note to Piazzi signed M. Berge giving details on the construction of the instrument. In a piece of paper glued to the interior of the case it was stated that the testing of the standard had been done in Greenwich in Sept. 1826[19].

From the consideration of the various documents we can however conclude that M. Berge was Ramsden's workman at least during the last ten years of the 18th century. It is therefore reasonable to identify M. Berge with the "Matthew Berge, workman to Mr. Ramsden", who divided Sir George Shuckburgh's equatorial instrument[20]. In any case M. Berge was Ramsden's successor[21] and the Palermo surveying instruments have to be considered his work.

APPENDIX


* Partially supported by CNR and CRRNSM.