EMIL BUSCH LARGE COMPOUND MICROSCOPE
C. 1915
SIGNED:BUSCH, Rathenow and also P. A'o, New York
SERIAL NUMBER: 22424
MODEL: UNKNOWN
DESCRIPTION:
This is heavy jughandle
compound microscope with black enamelled horseshoe foot. It has coarse focus by angled
rack and pinion, fine focus by the silver-colored metal knob which is calibrated on the right side. It has a chrome-plated
adjustment lever for the inclination joint on the right side. There is a short calibrated chrome-plated draw tube.
There are two oculars and three
objectives rotating on a triple nosepiece. It has an unusual facility for storing the second eyepiece in the metal hoop
attached to the optical tube. This feature
is unusual, but not unique as it occurs occasionally on other brands. The focusable substage is attached directly to the
bottom of the stage by a pillar on which the substage travels for focusing. There is an iris diaphragm, achromatic
condenser, and a
slide-out filter holder. The gimballed mirror rests on a swinging tailpiece but is too short to allow it to rise above
the stage. There are two stage clips. The ad is from a German magazine dated 1916.
HISTORY: Busch microscopes in general are not rare as many were produced. They were exported to the USA in the early 20th century and were sold
by retailers like ALOE, a company in business in the USA from the mid 19th through the early 20th century. The stands are of reasonably good quality construction.
Like the other German microscope makers, they made several different sizes of stand and a smaller stand is also part of this collection.
Their pocket microscope was very popular and an example of it is also in this collection.
Emil Busch took over an optics firm from his uncle August Duncker in about 1845 and built a considerable enterprise
that grew even after his death in 1888. The firm prospered making photographic equipment, binoculars, etc until WWII. Remnants
of the company were absorbed by optical companies in East Germany after WWII. Zeiss may have supplied their optical glass.