The first known device that measured speed is often claimed to be the Dutchman's log. This invention is attributed to the Portuguese Bartolomeu Crescêncio, who designed it in the end of the 15th century or in the beginning of the 16th century. A sailor threw a floating object overboard and used a sandglass to measure the time it took to pass between two points on deck. The first reference to a Dutchman's log is in 1623—later than the ship log. The Dutchman's log could be used with a brass tobacco box, rectangular with rounded ends. This box had tables on it to convert log timing to speed.