The 'Incomparable' Mr. Sutton

The Whipple Museum owns nine instruments by Henry Sutton, an instrument maker and prominent member of the 17th-century mathematical community. He was described just after his death as "that incomparable Instrument maker". He is best known for the 'Sutton-type' quadrant, an astronomical device made in collaboration with the mathematicians Thomas Harvey and John Collins.

"...highly delightful to behold"

The instrument maker Henry Sutton (circa 1624-1665) is known as one of the most talented artisans of the 17th century. In 1758, long after Sutton's death, Edmund Stone paid him the following praise:

"Mr Sutton's Quadrants, made above one hundred Years ago, are the finest divided Instruments in the World; and the Regularity and Exactness of the vast Number of Circles drawn upon them is highly delightful to behold." (1)

Details of his life are sparse. What is known - that he married twice and died of plague - can be supplemented by the study of his instruments, many of which carry the names of his collaborators and customers. This suggests that Sutton was a highly active member of the mathematical community. For example, a dialling scale on a Sutton instrument features the name Euclid Speidell, a London-based mathematics teacher.

The Whipple Museum owns nine instruments by Henry Sutton, an instrument maker and prominent member of the 17th-century mathematical community. He was described just after his death as "that incomparable Instrument maker". He is best known for the 'Sutton-type' quadrant, an astronomical device made in collaboration with the mathematicians Thomas Harvey and John Collins.

"...highly delightful to behold"

The instrument maker Henry Sutton (circa 1624-1665) is known as one of the most talented artisans of the 17th century. In 1758, long after Sutton's death, Edmund Stone paid him the following praise:

"Mr Sutton's Quadrants, made above one hundred Years ago, are the finest divided Instruments in the World; and the Regularity and Exactness of the vast Number of Circles drawn upon them is highly delightful to behold." (1)

Details of his life are sparse. What is known - that he married twice and died of plague - can be supplemented by the study of his instruments, many of which carry the names of his collaborators and customers. This suggests that Sutton was a highly active member of the mathematical community. For example, a dialling scale on a Sutton instrument features the name Euclid Speidell, a London-based mathematics teacher.

An important shop in London

His place of work and the range of his stock can be determined from the following advertisement, which is written on a quadrant dated 1658: "This Instrument or any of the Mathematiques are made in Brass or Wood by Henry Sutton Instrument maker behind the royall exchange" (Image 1). The Royal Exchange, which is now a shopping complex, was a major landmark in mid 17th-century London, having been built in the 1560s as a centre for merchants and tradesmen to do business. Sutton's shop on Threadneedle Street behind the Exchange would have been an important location for mathematical practitioners; not only did he make and sell instruments, he also collaborated on their design and sold mathematical books.

Read more: Sutton's quadrant

References