direct-vision spectroscope
Date1890-1920
Inventory Number1996-1-0586
ClassificationSpectroscope
Subject
Maker
Franz Schmidt & Haensch
1864-present
Cultural Region
Place of Origin
Dimensions45.1 × 56 × 25.2 cm (17 3/4 × 22 1/16 × 9 15/16 in.)
Material
DescriptionThe spectroscope is made of a long tube, one section fixed and the other, holding the eyepiece, movable. One end has a thumb screw to adjust the amount of light going in (the width of the slit). The other end, the eyepiece, is where one observes the spectrum generated by the instrument. Focus is adjusted with a micrometric screw. There is also a side telescope with a photographic scale where the prism-system is located. The tube rotates, pivots and is supported by a telescopic rod on a three-legged stand.
Signedon tube: Franz Schmidt & Haensch / Berlin
FunctionAn aid in chemical analysis where light coming from a substance is observed to determine its chemical composition. The instrument decomposes the light going through it in fine color lines, called spectral lines. The overall pattern, called the spectrum, is specific to each element. It is its signature. By analyzing the spectrum produced by such an instrument, one can determine the exact composition of an unknown substance.
Louis Jules Duboscq
Date: 1850-1880
Object number: 1997-1-1571
