Abstract:
This article presents results related to the research on an elbow transit telescope, number 10783, manufactured by Bamberg, and belonging to the MAST (Museum of Astronomy and Related Sciences) collections. The study was developed within the framework of the conservation program of the sky observation site, safeguarded by MAST, in Rio de Janeiro (Brazil), and originally belonging to the Observatório Nacional – ON. From the need for curative intervention in this object (considered urgent due to its poor conservation status), primary and secondary sources were investigated that could allow the construction of the trajectory of its use (1907-2016) and, thus, assist in the decisions for its conservation. The methodology used was based on the theoretical knowledge transversal to the conservation and the cultural biography of things, highlighted by some reports and statements of former employees of the ON who worked with the instrument; research on primary sources; and the analysis of the object itself. In addition, secondary sources were identified and analysed in libraries and digital databases of academic publications on aspects related to the instrument. From the data collected, it was possible to verify that the instrument was in operation for about 70 years, with the identification of several facts related to its trajectory of original use. Since 1985, the Bamberg telescope has been included in the collection of scientific instruments of MAST and has become part of its collection and has always been kept in the astronomical pavilion, the original place of its use.
