Antique R & J Beck Brass Microscope Fine Condition circa 1920s, Cased

This listing is for a beautifully presented antique monocular microscope by R & J Beck Ltd of London bearing serial number 22659 dating the instrument to around the 1910 to 1920 period. This model presents with a very nice heavy brass horseshoe base and a wonderful period look with gleaming brass-work with lacquer that's in great period condition all-round - probably the best I've seen on one of these instruments. It's got that look of a bygone age when scientific instruments really looked the part: it could even hold its own as an item of steam-punk interest given its brass-work and thumb-wheel adjustment mechanisms.

The brass to the whole instrument has a lovely mellow patina giving it a warm yellow-golden glow when it catches the light. It's a solid heavy well-made piece of brass, perfect for both display and technical use as intended. If you've read this far, you will probably be interested in these antique brass instruments, so please read on for a fuller description. The main coarse focus is via rack and pinion, which has a nice smooth action. Fine focus is achieved by a single brass thumb-wheel at the rear of the upper frame which has also a smooth action, with the adjuster graduated and there's also a small brass pointer adjacent to the scale.

The upper frame also tilts and can be tightened via a lever to hold in position for inclined viewing. With the optics, this antique brass microscope comes with a chromed eyepiece draw-tube with graduation marks and is supplied with three appropriate quality vintage eyepieces: - No. 1 - 5x magnification - No.

2 - 6x magnification - No. 3 - 8x magnification Plus it's got three vintage brass objective lenses and a period R & J Beck brass triple turret. The objectives all have their correct brass canisters and are as follows.

R & J Beck 2/3rds inch (14mm) - approx 10x magnification - R & J Beck 1/6th inch (4mm) - approx 40x magnification. R & J Beck 1/12th inch (2mm). Oil immersion - approx 100x magnification (not tested with oil) Overall, the range of magnification available therefore ranges from about 50x to around 800x when using oil immersion techniques. The microscope's rectangular stage is brass with an ebonite-type top layer. The stage surface is unmarked and is currently fitted with a pair of period chromed clips for holding slides steady during inclined viewing.

Turning to the sub-stage, we currently have a condenser fitted into the brass plug-in mounting, which in turn sits within a helical-screw condenser carrier, giving both height adjustment and swing-out capabilities. The condenser also has a working iris and swing-out filter carrier fitted, which takes 30mm diameter filters. Lighting is via a plano-concave mirror which is on a brass arm giving some swing and height adjustment along with a multi-adjustable gimbal; it's got good silvering on both sides showing just a tiny amount of age-related foxing.

This R & J Beck instrument is essentially an excellent and really well made piece of intricate Edwardian-era optical engineering and is a sturdy compact-size period microscope in original antique condition, with bags of character and period charm, presenting amazingly well. Please note that there is also an original hardwood storage case for this example with brass handle, internal lens/eyepiece racks and also a working lock that's also got its original key. In summary, this is a superb visual example of an antique brass Beck stand in highly original condition and is essentially a very collectable instrument well suited to both display and technical use. It will fill the display function amazingly well, really complementing a home office, study or similar display setting especially when set up with an appropriate antique slide. Thanks for looking - please also check out my other listings if you get a chance.

The item "Antique R & J Beck Brass Microscope Fine Condition circa 1920s, Cased" is in sale since Thursday, November 18, 2021. This item is in the category "Antiques\Science/Medicine\Scientific Instruments". The seller is "arcboutant" and is located in Glasgow. This item can be shipped to United Kingdom, Antigua and barbuda, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Australia, United States, Bahrain, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, China, Israel, Hong Kong, Norway, Indonesia, Malaysia, Mexico, Singapore, South Korea, Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand, Bangladesh, Belize, Bermuda, Bolivia, Barbados, Brunei darussalam, Cayman islands, Dominica, Ecuador, Egypt, Guernsey, Gibraltar, Guadeloupe, Grenada, French guiana, Iceland, Jersey, Jordan, Cambodia, Saint kitts and nevis, Saint lucia, Liechtenstein, Sri lanka, Macao, Monaco, Maldives, Montserrat, Martinique, Nicaragua, Oman, Pakistan, Peru, Paraguay, Reunion, Turks and caicos islands, Aruba, Saudi arabia, South africa, United arab emirates, Ukraine, Chile, Bahamas, Colombia, Costa rica, Guatemala, Honduras, Jamaica, Kuwait, Panama, Philippines, Qatar, Trinidad and tobago, Uruguay, Viet nam, Russian federation.

Period: 1901 to 1950
Antique: Yes
Material: Brass
Type: Microscope