Leidse lenses

1681 - 1708

The effect of microscopes or telescopes could be enhanced by using several lenses in combination. The production of a good-quality lens was a challenge: complications quickly arose involving the nature of the light, the quality of the glass and the grinding technique. The edges could colour or parts of the lens become blurred. Samuel van Musschenbroek was the first successful “philosophical instrument maker” in the Netherlands, established in Leiden.