-----Oorspronkelijk bericht-----
Van: Tim Morken <timcdc@hotmail.com>
Aan: histonet@Pathology.swmed.edu <histonet@Pathology.swmed.edu>
Datum: woensdag 14 april 1999 16:49
Onderwerp: Microscope history (was science/art)


The precise "starting date" of microscopy is uncertain.  Cornelis Jacobsz
Drebbel (1572-1631, The Netherlands) is mentioned as the first who build a
microscope, other sources are mentioning Hans and Zacharias Jansen. The
oldest known compound microscope is dated 1590, it's magnification was
3-9x... For Drebbel as the inventor of compound microscopes speaks the fact,
that microscopes made by him were sold trough his German family member Jacob
Kufler in Italy early in the 17th century. These microscopes are mentioned
in some historical sources. Microscopes made by Drebbel in the early 1620's
had a magnification of about 30x. His microscopes, in use in Italy  in 1625,
had magnifications of about 150x. Those were the first who were called
"microscopia" from the Greek "mikros" ("small") and "skopeoo" ("looking
at").

The term "cells" was first used by Hooke and not by Van leeuwenhoek...

By the way: Hooke couldn't have made a compound microscope in 1595: he was
born in 1635, gave his first demonstration for the Royal Society in 1663 and
published his "Micrographia" two years later... He grinded his own lenses,
but his microscope stands were probabely build by Christopher Cock in
London...

Is history an art?

Regards,

Yvan Lindekens