inkstand with letter scale

maker: Narcisse-Eugène Briais, Paris, France
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letter scale with inkstand, maker Narcisse Briais
inkstand with letter scale, maker: Narcisse Briais, France
 

This letter balance with ink set comes from France and has the N.B. logo of Narcisse Briais from Paris on the letter plate. A similar design is depicted in Le Panthéon de l'Industrie of January 2, 1876. In 2017, La Poste, the French Mail Services, issued a series of stamps depicting scales and letter scales. One stamp shows a comparable letter scale with ink set, only the fixed frame of the letter balance looks slightly different. My copy comes with three weights: 5g, 30g and 50g. Probably the weights of 10 and 2½ grams are missing. The feet of the inkwells fit into the recesses of the wooden base plate. The inkwells have loose lids. Dimensions base plate: 18.2 x 9.9 cm, height 3.0 cm. The unloaded letter scale is 9.5 cm high. On previous pages a few details have been written about the company Narcisse Briais, see for example here and here.
Below some more images of this old ink set with letter balance marked with the letters N.B. from Narcisse Briais.
 

back of the inkstand with letter scale
back of the inkstand with letter scale
 

figure in Le Panthéon
image from Le Panthéon de l'Industrie of January 2, 1876
 
 
on French stamp in 2017
as depicted on a French postage stamp in 2017
 
 
side view
side view
 
 
the lids and weights have been removed
animation: take off the lids and weights
[move the pointer over the photo]
 
side view
side view
 
 
detail 1
the inkwells with the loose lids and the weights
next to the letter balance
detail 2
the NB logo of Narcisse Briais
 
detail 3
50g, 30g and 5g. the 10g and 2½g are missing
 
detail 4
the smaller diameter of the foot of the inkwell well in view
 
detail 5
the lids are clearly affected
 
detail 6
the bottom has four cylindrical feet
 
detail 7
this letter scale is nickel plated
 
detail 8
seen from above
 
detail 9
the nickel layer of the weights is partly worn away
 
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« collection part 24 «© copyright André Solversion: April, 14, 2022