MONOCULAR COMPOUND MICROSCOPE This simple monocular compound microscope, whose maker is unknown, was produced sometime around 1860. The model featured below was redrawn from photographs of the original microscope, which is part of the Billings microscope collection at Walter Reed Army Hospital in Washington DC. The turned wooden base is approximately two and a half inches in diameter and supports a solid brass pillar that is screwed into the base. A washer-shaped brass stage is attached to the pillar beneath the body tube, which is also made of brass. There is a single eyepiece, with two convex lenses, and an objective screwed into the nosepiece. S.J. RIENKS MONOCULAR COMPOUND MICROSCOPE This brass microscope was made in Holland and is signed “S. J. Rienks, Friesland, 1825″. The model featured below was redrawn from photographs of the original microscope, which is part of the Billings microscope collection at Walter Reed Army Hospital in Washington DC. This unusual microscope is constructed according to the design of the Dr. Robert Smith reflecting microscope with a folding telescopic tripod base. Dr. Smith was an English instrument maker and author of System of Optics, published in London in 1738.

The upper end of the body tube holds a large concave mirror, and the lower end a small convex mirror. The underside of the smaller mirror is ground to form a concave mirror to act as a Liberkühn reflector. A central stop (supported by a wire) blocks direct light from passing to the eyepiece. A short tube carries the spring-loaded stage, and the microscope is focused by a rack and pinion gearset. The double mirror, constructed of speculum metal, is attached to one of the legs by means of a thumbscrew. JAUBERT MONOCULAR COMPOUND MICROSCOPE This beautiful brass microscope was made by Léon Jaubert, in Paris, around the middle of the nineteenth century. The illustration below has been redrawn from photographs of the original microscope, which is featured in Gerard Turner’s excellent book Collecting Microscopes, a volume in Christie’s International Collectors Series of books on antiques. The microscope is supported by a horseshoe-shaped solid brass foot. Two pillars rise from the foot and meet at a swivel joint that connects to the stylish limb of the microscope. Tension at the swivel joint is controlled by several knurled brass knobs. The microscope body is solid brass and is moved into and out of focus through a rackwork mechanism connected to the limb. A single eyepiece and objective magnify the specimen, which rests on a blackened circular stage with a pair of clips. An elaborate adjustable arm with swivel joints holds the substage double mirror, which can be easily adjusted to provide illumination from a variety of positions. Overall, this microscope is one of the most stylish designs of the period.