Three-legged compass, with one leg missing. The steel-tipped legs are graduated and bear the inscription "Piede romano partito in onci 12 e deti 16" [Roman foot divided into 12 inches and 16 deti]. The notebook of Benvenuto della Volpaia contains an illustration of a variant of the three-leg compass attributed to Michelangelo Buonarroti and used for drawing different kinds of curves. Provenance: Medici collections.