William Oughtred published his design for a slide rule in 1632. A series of designs followed. In 1727 Jacob Leupold published his Theatrum Arithmetico-Geometricum³ of which Table XII (page 241) is held in this collection (see below).⁴

This page shows three existing designs for logarithmic proportional rules. The top most (titled Mechanische Rechen Kunst and bearing also the initials MLBMC of its maker) is effectively a Gunter scale and dividers would be used to perform multiplications or divisions using the scale.⁶ The lower two are very early designs of slide rules.

William Oughtred published his design for a slide rule in 1632. A series of designs followed. In 1727 Jacob Leupold published the “Theatrum Arithmetico-Geometricum”⁷ of which Table XII (page 241) is held in this collection (see below).⁸

This page shows three existing designs for logarithmic proportional rules. The top most (titled Mechanische Rechen Kunst and bearing also the initials MLBMC of its maker) is effectively a Gunter scale and dividers would be used to perform multiplications or divisions using the scale.⁹ The lower two are slide rules.

http://meta-studies.net/pmwiki/uploads/SlideRuleDes1670.jpg

¹ A scanned version of this book may be downloaded from http://ia600304.us.archive.org/33/items/theatrumarithmet00leup/theatrumarithmet00leup.pdf (viewed 3 Jan 2012) (↑)

² This page was held in a German family and placed on auction on ebay in January 2012, after the seller’s grandfather, an art collector, who had held it and had it restored, passed away. (↑)

³ A scanned version of this book may be downloaded from http://ia600304.us.archive.org/33/items/theatrumarithmet00leup/theatrumarithmet00leup.pdf (viewed 3 Jan 2012) (↑)

⁴ This page was held in a German family and placed on auction on ebay in January 2012, after the seller’s grandfather, an art collector, who had held it and had it restored, passed away. (↑)

⁵ a diagram of this http://meta-studies.net/pmwiki/uploads/staebe1.JPG is shown at ”Rechenschieber mit logarithmischen Skalen” http://www.rechenwerkzeug.de/staebe.htm (viewed 2 Jan 2012) (↑)

⁶ a diagram of this http://meta-studies.net/pmwiki/uploads/staebe1.JPG is shown at ”Rechenschieber mit logarithmischen Skalen” http://www.rechenwerkzeug.de/staebe.htm (viewed 2 Jan 2012) (↑)

⁷ A scanned version of this book may be downloaded from http://ia600304.us.archive.org/33/items/theatrumarithmet00leup/theatrumarithmet00leup.pdf (viewed 3 Jan 2012) (↑)

⁸ This page was held in a German family and placed on auction on ebay in January 2012, after the seller’s grandfather, an art collector, who had held it and had it restored, passed away. (↑)

⁹ a diagram of this http://meta-studies.net/pmwiki/uploads/staebe1.JPG is shown at ”Rechenschieber mit logarithmischen Skalen” http://www.rechenwerkzeug.de/staebe.htm (viewed 2 Jan 2012) (↑)