Friday, March 10, 2017

Archives International Auctions - 39th auction

AIA's upcoming sale includes an offering of nearly 1,300 scripophily lots from the American Bank Note Company Archives. One of the lots is a specimen stock certificate from The Warner & Swasey Company.  



The Warner & Swasey Company
specimen stock certificate for 100 common shares, 1950-1960s
lot 1112 in the auction 


Warner and Swasey started a machine tool and instrument busines in 1880. From the beginning W&S constructed telescopes and became famous for that. In 1888 they built a 36-inch (91-cm) refracting telescope - the lens manufactured by Alvan Clark - for Lick Observatory, University of California. Astronomer E. E. Barnard used this telescope when he discovered Amalthea, the fifth moon of Jupiter. The planet's first four moons were observed by Galileo 300 years earlier. In the lower left corner of the certificate you can see the company's seal which incorporates a drawing of the Lick telescope.
W&S also produced turret lathes and made the transition to computer numerical control machine tools during the 1950s through 1970s. In 1976 the company introduced the RT-4 computer terminal system intended for industrial applications. It was built around the Intel 4040 microprocessor. 



U.S. & Worldwide Scripophily and 
Security Printing Ephemera.


Auction details
  • Date : 14 March 2017
  • Locaton : This is an Internet only auction.
  • Further info : see here, catalogue there


F.L.

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