E.S. Ritchie U.S.S. Constellation Ship's Binnacle

E. S. Ritchie U.S.S. Constellation Ship's Binnacle, U.S. Navy Yard, California, c. 1868, octagonal brass tapered hood with five glass panels, finial ring plate engraved U.S. Navy Yard California , sits atop the mahogany octagonal paneled box housing the 7 1/2-in. gimbaled wet-card compass marked E.S. Ritchie Boston , patent dates 1862, 1863, 1866, and 1868 on the outer ring, bulbous ring-turned center pedestal resting on the brass-wrapped undulating triangular base, ht. 52 in. Provenance: The collection of the Valley Forge Historical Society. Note: On loan to the U.S. Naval Academy, Annapolis, Maryland, from 1954 to 1988.