Description

Offeerd for sale is a good example of an antique monocular brass microscope by Ernst Leitz of Wetzlar in Germany, bearing production reference number 121142, which according to my Leitz dating table means that this example was manufactured in 1908.  The condition is generally pretty good, with only a few age and use appropriate signs of wear to the finish on the instrument and just the right time worn look to its paint finish and brass-work.  This example also has a nice set of eyepieces and objective lenses and may well therefore be quite a sought-after classic model in view of the quality manufacturer, good optics and completeness of the instrument.  Being a compact instrument it’s a good proposition for display, say on a desk-top when set up with a suitable antique slide – and it’s also perfectly usable producing some nice images – in the listing photos I was examining a slide containing a diatom strew.

Turning to the main technical details of this quality monocular microscope of continental design, we have the following:

1)  Continental construction with horse-shoe shaped foot and single upright in black finish, with column/upper limb in lacquered brass.  Note that this model is non-inclinable.

2)  A monocular eyepiece unit with graduated chromed draw-tube allowing tube lengths up to 190mm, with three useful eyepieces giving a useful range of magnification as under:

10x magnification No. 4
8x magnification No. 3 
6x magnification No. 2

3)  The instrument’s main focus is controlled via a pair of brass thumb-wheels located at the top of the limb which move the optical tube – travel and focus are both very good with the optical tube holding in position as it should.  Fine focus is via a single brass thumb-wheel on the top of the column that also has a smooth action being freshly lubricated.  The upper limb on this model of microscope is not designed to tilt.  

4)  There are two good quality objective lenses on the double turret, as follows:

10x – Leitz No. 3
40x  – R & J Beck 4mm

The objective lenses and eyepieces supplied therefore provide an effective magnification range from around 60x up to a 400x magnification when using the highest power lens/eyepiece combination with good lighting. 

5)  The stage is of a square design in brass with some signs of wear but not excessive.  It’s currently fitted with a pair of chromed slide clips for holding slides steady which work quite well.

6)  Below stage there’s a wheel-of-stops with 5 aperture positions available and a mechanism that gives a subtle change of feel when the apertures are correctly aligned with the optical axis.  The wheel-of-stops is operated as shown in the listing photos.

7)  Lighting is provided by plano-concave mirror on a gimbal mount with swing adjustment and very good silvering to both sides.

8)  There is a matching numbers hardwood case with internal racking, brass carry-handle along with working lock & key missing so a cupboard latch is fitted to keep the door closed.  The case is in pretty good condition for its age, with some loss of finish to the exterior surfaces.

In summary, this is a nice clean example of a vintage Edwardian era Leitz monocular microscope in very good condition for its age.  This example may therefore appeal to collectors as well as specialists seeking a quality brass instrument from well-known makers Leitz. 

Despite its compact dimensions this is also quite a heavy microscope especially with the wooden storage case, so owing to its weight it will be partially dismantled, very well packed and dispatched by insured courier upon receipt of cleared funds. 

Thanks for looking.