Nachet et Fils Student microscope (No. 350)

Nachet No 350
Age:  c1881
Made by
Nachet et Fils.
Made in
Paris
Nachet engraving
Nachet et Fils
17 rue St. Severin. Paris
Nachet imaging
Imaging
This is a late 19th Century compound microscope made by Nachet; referred to as the " Microscope petit modele". It is mounted to a large base with a compass joint just below the stage insertion. The microscope body is press-fit into a support tube attached to a cantilever and fine focusing mechanism. The top thumbscrew turns a fine-pitch threaded rod that then moves the tube support. The stage has two dovetailed sample clips, and a three-position aperture underneath. The mirror (dia=3.3 cm) has one parabolic reflecting surface. Microscope optics consists of three ganged objective lenses, which are unmarked, and two eyepieces; one contains a reticle. Imaging is good, however this instrument does show marked chromatic aberration. This is not surprising as this is a low-cost student microscope. The base is engraved Nachet et Fils, 17 rue St. Severin.

This instrument is equipped with a Nachet camera lucida. This is a device that allowed the microscope operator to see the sample superimposed over a sheet of drawing paper set next to the microscope. Using this device the microscopist would be able to "trace" the sample onto the paper, thus making highly detailed and accurate drawings. See here for a short history of the camera lucida.

Nachet et Fils refers to Camille Nachet and his son Jean Alfred, who joined the Nachet firm c1850. At that time the instruments were signed thus. See here for the Nachet timeline (in French).

Contact: Steven Ruzin, Emeritus
Curator of The Golub Collection

The collection is located in the Valley Life Sciences Building, Onderdonk Lobby
The University of California at Berkeley, USA

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