Microscope

Discussion Antony van Leeuwenhoek was born in Delft on October 24, 1632 His father was a basket-maker, while his mother's family were brewers. Antony was educated as a child in a school in the town of Warmond, then lived with his uncle at Benthuizen; in 1648 he was apprenticed in a linen-draper's shop. Around 1654 he returned to Delft, where he spent the rest of his life. He set himself up in business as a draper (a fabric merchant); …

…was no such thing. Because of numberous difficulties in building the microscope, early compound microscopes were not practical for magnifying objects more than about twenty or thirty times natural size. Leeuwenhoek's skill at grinding lenses together with his naturally acute eyesight and great care in adjusting the lighting where he worked, made it easier for him to build microscopes that magnified over 200 times. With clearer and brighter images than any of his colleagues could achieve.