GPO letter scale
De Grave, Short, Fanner & Co

maker: De Grave, Short, Fanner & Co, London, England bruine lijn

brievenweger, maker De Grave, Short, Fanner & Co, Londen, Engeland

GPO brievenweger maker De Grave, Short, Fanner & Co

This scale for letters and parcels was used by the English post. The letter scale is marked with an upward pointing arrow ↑ and GPO on the plates and on the stand. Two of the four weights also bear the marking ↑ GPO, the other two weights are probably later replacements, they lack the GPO marking. The weights are ½ ounce, 1 ounce, 2 ounces, and 4 ounces (oz). GPO stands for General Post Office, the British government postal service. The arrow indicates government ownership. The letter scale was made by the firm De Grave, Short, Fanner & Co. from London in England. Charles De Grave (1767-1799) started making scales. His widow Mary De Grave continued the company until 1844. From 1817 to 1844 under the name De Grave and Son. In 1844 son Charles took over the firm. In 1845 the partnership with Samuel Robinson Short started and the firm was henceforth called De Grave, Short and Co. Later, probably also in 1845, William Fanner joined the firm and the firm name became De Grave, Short, Fanner & Co. In May 1857 the partnership between Short and Fanner came to an end.

back of the GPO letter scale

The firm was continued under the same name De Grave, Short, Fanner & Co. In June 1863 Samuel Robinson Short went bankrupt, but the firm apparently continued under the same name. Until William Fanner died in 1871, when the firm name was again De Grave, Short and Co. In 1922 the firm was taken over by the English company Avery. The firm with the name De Grave, Short, Fanner Co. existed under this name for only a short period, namely from 1845 to 1871 at the most.
A more recent GPO letter scale has been shown previously, see this one GPO letter scale.
The scale is 26.5 centimeters high, the maximum width is 28.5 cm, the beam is 22.9 cm long. The mahogany base measures 25.5 x 10.6 x 2.2 cm.
Below are some more images of this GPO letter scale from De Grave, Short, Fanner & Co.

side view

the GPO letter scale
part brass, part magnetic steel

side view

steel suspension left	steel central suspension with indicators	steel suspension right
↑ GPO marking on the round weight plate	the GPO letter scale with 4 weights	↑ GPO marking and the makers name and location De Grave Short Fanner & Co, London
the steel weighing beam	the GPO letter scale without the weights	the four rectangular weights
the weights of ½, 1, 2, and 4 ounces	The 1oz and 2oz weights also include the ↑ GPO marking	the recesses look a bit primitive

the detached parts

still with the suspended beam

marked on the beam with 11	marked 11 on the central suspension	again marked 11 on the central suspension
both pointers are visible	marked ↑ GPO on the brass stand	the brass pin of the suspension
the stand is marked with the number 5 on the bottom surface	the stand is screwed into the triangular brass base	the flat bottom of the mahogany base

the sturdy brass parts	bottom of the brass parts
the unpolished GPO letter scale	the polished GPO letter scale
a similar GPO De Grave letter scale c1890, illustrated in the Handbook of Old Weighing Instruments by Michael Crawforth	a more recent version of the GPO De Grave letter scale now completely in brass with separate knife-edge bearing blocks is in the De Grave catalogue List 36
the partnership in the firm De Grave, Short, & Fanner between Short and Fanner stops on May 14, 1857. Short takes over all debts and continues the business, according to a notice in The London Gazette of May 19, 1857, on pp1788.	the firm of De Grave, Short, & Fanner went bankrupt on 26 June 1863, according to a notice in The London Gazette of 21 July 1863, on pp3644 N.B. the newspaper incorrectly states Degraves instead of De Grave and incorrectly states Farmer instead of Fanner

« collection part 28 «

version: February 28, 2025

GPO letter scaleDe Grave, Short, Fanner & Co

GPO letter scale
De Grave, Short, Fanner & Co