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In June 2011 Gregg Perry departed on a two-phase trip. One, traveling to Belize with an associate timber merchant looking to purchase ″silk floss wood″ for his clients. The excursion took them into the tropical forrest identifying and labeling the cut timber. This tree’s bark is studded with thick conical pricklets; these protect the tree from knawling animals as well as protecting by storing water for dry times. The wood yielded from the trunk is gray-green, very dense and stable and used by contemporary furniture makers.
From there he took a short plane ride over to the French West Indies. Perry was seeking out the location where William Harrison (John Harrison’s son) took his historic reading of longitude. Upon being led to the base of the mountain, a one and a half hour rugged hike ensued through tropical forrests to reach a copy of the original stand’s location (about 125 years old). The vision was far-reaching, even on this overcast day with natural winds at this altitude of about 50 mph.
In the late 18th century Harrison and Reverand Nevil Maskeline took quadrant observations while competing against easch other for the ₤20,000 prize for a practicable solution of longitude. Maskeline took the astronomical approach, while Harrison used his marine watch H4.
Just abit on H4-the marine watch had a white enameled dial with blued steel minute and hour hands, polished center second hand, bolt and joint hinge which swings the movement out of the case, an uncanny action in the remontois wheel which is between the crown wheel and the forth wheel, with 5 beats per second, slight recoil, with 30 hour duration. The plates are polished brass, not gilt, the pivots are rubys with the end stones being diamonds.
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