Description

Watson Histology Stand – circa 1892

Offered for sale is a nicely presented and well engineered antique Histology stand microscope by W. Watson & Sons of London.  It dates to around 1892 based on the sequential Watson production number of 3023, which is engraved onto the tripod along with the Watson name and their London address in High Holborn. 

This Watson Histology model is one of the rarer models in Watson’s microscope line-up in this period and was produced to meet the demands of medical institutions at the time.  It presents with a novel type of tripod base similar to those popularised by rival makers Crouch and Swift and gives the stand gives good stability when in use.  The histology stand was originally introduced by Watson in 1886 and this example is of the initial form with friction tube coarse focus, whereas later examples were fitted with rack & pinion hardware.  I’ve put a couple of pages from Watson’s 1896 catalogue at the end of the listing photos showing this exact model.

This late Victorian example is in  good original condition with some later accessories and has been well looked after by its former custodians. It also benefits from a useful set of objectives and eyepieces, a brass stage with original brass specimen retaining clips and the correct period storage case, which is also in pretty good condition.  It presents really well with this example having good lacquered brass details including its main tube, thumb-wheel and a few other details, which are showing few signs of age-related tarnishing, very much in keeping with light usage over the last 134 years.  This Histology microscope is essentially an excellent piece of Victorian compact optical engineering exuding that famous Watson brand from just about  every component, based on quality materials, solid construction, great design and skilled workmanship with most components probably hand-finished.  This is a sturdy quality period microscope in good original condition, fully working, with few signs of wear and bags of character and period charm.  It’s got a great look and patina and is a fantastic example of a compact brass Watson from the late Victorian era.

In terms of construction we have an anodised brass tripod of Crouch/Swift form, with twin uprights to the pivot with tension adjustment as required.  The upper limb is a Lister-style also in anodised brass.  The instrument’s main coarse focus is by via a frition tube which works well, which has a smooth action holding in position as it should in its working range.  Fine focus is achieved via a brass thumb-wheel at the rear of the upper limb which moves an internal lever system and also has a smooth operation.  Turning to the optics, this Watson Histology microscope comes fitted with a graduated brass eyepiece draw-tube and some appropriate quality vintage eyepieces that with good illumination produce excellent images:

– 6x magnification – top-hat 
– 8x magnification – top-hat
– 8x magnification – standard form

There are two vintage objectives as follows:

– approx 1.5 inches brass low-power objective – 4x magnification
– approx 1/8th inch – unbranded – 50x magnification
(both objectives have brass canisters)

Overall, the range of magnification provided ranges from about 24x to a perfectly respectable 400x without the need for oil immersion techniques.

The square brass stage has original brass clips and this system is excellent for retaining slides during inclined viewing. 

Turning to the sub-stage, there’s a 39mm fixed ring mount to which can be friction-fitted the following accessories:

– plug-in condensing lens – useful for higher magnification work
– dark-ground insert which works well for dark-field illumination

Lighting is via a plano-concave mirror which is in pretty good condition on its brass support arm giving height and plenty of adjustment options via the gimbal, with good functional silvering to both sides.

All controls operate reasonably smoothly and have been lightly lubricated with sparing amounts of non-hardening lubricant.

This is a pretty good visual and nice working example of Watson’s classic and now quite rare early-pattern Histology model in good original condition with decent optics and some useful accessories.  It’s essentially very much in collectable condition, displaying well for a compact Watson stand, with surprising presence when fully extended for use as I hope the listing photos demonstrate.  Great item for both desk-top use and display!

There is also a period-correct storage case with this example, which is also in good condition for its age with carry-handle, internal storage rack for the lenses and with lock & key absent, there’s a cupboard latch fitted to keep the door secure.

Owing to the weight and delicacy of the microscope, it will be partially dismantled, well wrapped for shipping and dispatched by insured courier upon receipt of cleared funds.  

Thanks for looking.